What's your call third time? (video)

[flash277]

Interference or no?

 

[Comp]

Hard to tell how close the runner passed in front of the fielder so I have no idea without being the base umpire in that game. Simply running in front of the fielder is not in itself interference.

 

[joe720]

Lost a game that way last year when our runner was called out for same exact thing. Would have probably called her out. In the slo-mo you can see the SS pause when the runner flashed in front of her. It's a tough one for sure, but letter of the rule it's interference.

 

[badmonkey]

I can't recite the rule as it is written, but if I was coaching and had that called interference I'd be livid.

If that is interference, the rule needs to be changed.

 

[MTR]

Lost a game that way last year when our runner was called out for same exact thing. Would have probably called her out. In the slo-mo you can see the SS pause when the runner flashed in front of her. It's a tough one for sure, but letter of the rule it's interference.

Nothing. There is no rule preventing a runner from taking a path in front of a fielder. There is no act of interference in this video. If the runner hesitated to wait for the ball to get there and then cut in front of fielder, then you may have INT

 

[joe720]

Thought it would fall under this?



It was sited when my DD's team was called for it. Said that it blocked the SS from making a routine play even though there was no contact. This is from UTrip.

 

[badmonkey]

Do the runners not have a right to advance directly to the next base? I would think they should be allowed to advance if they are running straight to the base and not making an attempt to interfere. If their is a runner on 1st what is the runner supposed to do? Stand there to let the ball get fielded and get tagged out. I would think she should be allowed to run hard to 3rd.

 

[The Man In Blue]

I’m with Comp that the angle in the video makes it hard to offer an opinion. It does look like the fielder advances on the ball and then checks up. It is the umpire’s judgment whether the runner caused a change in the fielder’s actions. The fielder had the ”right of way” when playing the ball.

Here are the pertinent USA Softball rules:

 

[canyonjoe]

Do the runners not have a right to advance directly to the next base? I would think they should be allowed to advance if they are running straight to the base and not making an attempt to interfere. If their is a runner on 1st what is the runner supposed to do? Stand there to let the ball get fielded and get tagged out. I would think she should be allowed to run hard to 3rd.

Runners do not have the unlimited right to just run to the next base. They can't interfere with the person fielding the ball. I'm not saying this is interference as the angle doesn't show it clearly but it could be. In you example about the runner on 1st going to 2nd they can run around the fielder fielding the ball but can't just run into them.

 

[So Cal Seth]

Just came to say this looks like a beautiful place to play softball.