Ask MrUmp1 your rules question.

[Puma concolor]

[quote name="Puma concolor" post="803131" timestamp="1274220107"]
Mr. Ump1, here is the scenario.

Runner on 1st base 2 outs.
Batter swings at 3rd strike and its not caught.
Batter takes off for first.
Umpire behind the plate runs down the first baseline behind the catcher and yells 3 times "he's out".
Catcher never throws the ball.

So now runners are on 1st and 2nd.

The umpires put the batter back in the batters box and the moves 2nd base runner back to first.
Pitcher throws a low fast ball for a ball.
Pitcher throws and batter swings and misses - inning over.
Struck him out twice. 

A few years ago I had an umpire tell me that his verbal call is final.
For instance, he said if a bunted ball is sitting five feet in front of home plate, in the middle of fair territory, and the umpire calls it foul then it is foul!
[/quote]

MrUmp1 any thoughts on this scenario?

[MrUmp1]

[quote name="Puma concolor" post="803603" timestamp="1274334144"]
[quote author=Puma concolor link=topic=35113.msg803131#msg803131 date=1274220107]
Mr. Ump1, here is the scenario.

Runner on 1st base 2 outs.
Batter swings at 3rd strike and its not caught.
Batter takes off for first.
Umpire behind the plate runs down the first baseline behind the catcher and yells 3 times "he's out".
Catcher never throws the ball.

So now runners are on 1st and 2nd.

The umpires put the batter back in the batters box and the moves 2nd base runner back to first.
Pitcher throws a low fast ball for a ball.
Pitcher throws and batter swings and misses - inning over.
Struck him out twice. 

A few years ago I had an umpire tell me that his verbal call is final.
For instance, he said if a bunted ball is sitting five feet in front of home plate, in the middle of fair territory, and the umpire calls it foul then it is foul!
[/quote]

MrUmp1 any thoughts on this scenario?
[/quote]

In this instance if the catcher would most likely have thrown out the runner it all came out the same. By rule if the umpire calls an out then it is an out. I think in this instance he felt so bad about calling it wrong he did a do over. We have all made calls that we knew we would have an argument either way, comes with the territory. Many of us have made that same mistake forgetting how many outs there are.

[td]

[quote name="MrUmp1" post="803464" timestamp="1274304787"]
[quote author=td link=topic=35113.msg803260#msg803260 date=1274274608]
We had one a couple of weeks ago in an 11U game at Ford Park. Bases loaded with 2 outs. Hitter hits a little pop up between pitchers mound and where second baseman is playing. Umpire immediately calls infield fly rule (which was a horrible call regardless of how many outs we had because no one even got close to catching the ball). Runner at 2nd hears umpire and decides he better go back to 2nd because he (runner) must be confused on how many outs there were. Runner on 3rd scores but they force the guy going to 3rd because he stayed at 2nd because infield fly rule was called. What do you do to resolve this mess?
[/quote]

First if I was coaching then I most likely would have been reminding the runners of how many outs they were and if they were moving at the crack of the bat. This instance with two outs i would have been telling my runners to keep moving and then after the play if the umpire still said it was an infield fly I would remind him that there were two outs and it was not in effect. An infield fly is called to remind the runners in this case it hurt a runner but the coach should have been in the game enough to overcome this. If I ever did that as an official, I may have had to call for a do over like someone mentioned before. As an umpire whenever you make a call like that you are in a know win situation and you are going to get eat on by someone. I think it also shows that we all makes errors and this is just a game and not life or death.
[/quote]



That is such a great answer. I was the coach and my player was reminded but he is 11 and listened to the umpire. If I had gotten an answer like that it would have been easy to swallow. As a coach, I would always rather an umpire just tell me that he blew the call. You're right it happens and at the end of the day it's just a kids baseball game. The problem comes in when excuses are made instead of owning up to our mistakes. Something we probably all do at some point even though we were taught to own up to our mistakes.

[Puma concolor]

Mr. Ump1,

Runners on first and second no outs.
Infield fly is in order.
Ball popped up in the infield.
Umpire never calls infield fly but signals it with his hand.

Does the umpire, by rule, HAVE to verbally call infield fly?

Thanks,

[MrUmp1]

[quote name="Puma concolor" post="815057" timestamp="1277754210"]
Mr. Ump1,

Runners on first and second no outs.
Infield fly is in order.
Ball popped up in the infield.
Umpire never calls infield fly but signals it with his hand.

Does the umpire, by rule, HAVE to verbally call infield fly?

Thanks,
[/quote]

No he does not. The reason an umpire makes a verbal call is for the benefit of the runners but there is no rule about the verbal call.

[Puma]

Here's the scenario:

A man on first with two out's and a dropped third strike.  The plate umpire calls the hitter out and as catcher finds the ball the plate umpire signals and calls the hitter out again.  The defensive players come off the field without tagging the hitter or throwing to first.  The coach of the team hitting discusses the play with the field umpire who then discusses the play with the plate umpire.  While the discussion is going on the base runner that was on first and the hitter circle the bases.  The field umpire and the plate umpire both recognize that it was a blown call but state that it is the defensive teams responsibility to know the rules and they allow both runs to score and continue the inning with two outs.

Is this correct?  I realize umpires are human and are going to make mistakes but this just doesn't seem like the right correction to this blown call.

[MrUmp1]

If the plate umpire calls an out then it is an out no matter how bad the call was.

[dontknowjack]

[quote name="adminbaberuth" post="346637" timestamp="1204721331"]
MrUmp1 will be our source for a rules question for High School baseball. This thread will be for rules not judgement calls during the season.

Thread rule

1) No bashing the umpires

2) Keep it serious to baseball issues, no chit chat. 
[/quote]........OK  baseball question.....if a ball is hit which bounces in fair play and is clearly going to hit foul but a player fields the ball with both feet in bounds before it hits the ground or goes foul, then the ball is considerd live and a fair ball?  or no?  Same with a fly ball hit towards the outfield line clearly going foul again but the outfielder woust staying inbouds fields the ball is a fair ball, so if the feet are inbounds and he tips the ball which drops foul is a fair ball which fell in foul territory?

[MrUmp1]

Both of your questions are the same answer. The only thing that matters is where the [b]BALL[/b] is when it is contacted by the fielder. Whether a player is in fair territory or not does not matter only where the ball is. Also you can never assume if a ball is going foul or not. Either it is fair or foul. Example like your 2nd question : Right fielder with both feet in fair terriotry reaches over the line and contacts the ball in foul territory, it is a foul ball. How about this, if the fielder is in fair territory and the ball bounces off his glove in fair terrotory but hits the ground in foul territory is still a fair ball since it was first contacted in fair territory. It's always where the ball is. Hope this helps

[teeboan]

Hey Mr Ump, if a guy or gal wanted to become to top notch umpire like you, how and where would they get started? See ya next week.

[MrUmp1]

We have now started our meetings . Every Wednesday night at the city court rooms at 700 Orleans st. We need people so come join, have fun, and make a little pocket change. PM me for more details.

[coopntx]

Runner on first. The batter bunts, the home plate umpire calls dead ball - ball hit the bat. The third baseman meanwhile fielded the ball and overthrew first, the runners went to 3rd and 2nd.  The home plate umpire then ask the field umpire if the ball hit the bat. The field umpire said no. What is the correct call? Leave the runners on 3rd and 2nd, bring the runner back to first and batter back to the plate with one strike, bring the runners to 1st and 2nd, or play the pitch over (bring runner back to 1st and batter back with no count).

[2throwrundown]

[quote name="coopntx" post="973735" timestamp="1298847994"]
Runner on first. The batter bunts, the home plate umpire calls dead ball - ball hit the bat. The third baseman meanwhile fielded the ball and overthrew first, the runners went to 3rd and 2nd.  The home plate umpire then ask the field umpire if the ball hit the bat. The field umpire said no. What is the correct call? Leave the runners on 3rd and 2nd, bring the runner back to first and batter back to the plate with one strike, bring the runners to 1st and 2nd, or play the pitch over (bring runner back to 1st and batter back with no count).
[/quote]

if the ball was deamed to hit the batter then the runners are 1st and 2nd.  The play was automatically dead when the umpire called dead ball.  If the batter attemted to actually bunt the ball then it is a dead ball strike runner would return to 1st and play would resume with a strike added to the count same batter.

[MrUmp1]

The main part is once the umpire called a dead ball then that is what it is. Once an umpire calls a dead ball or a foul then that is what it is.

[Burkeville_#70]

Please explain in detail wat is a balk???

[MrUmp1]

I could write forever on what is a balk. Most of the time it is an action that is not a legal pitch or an action of picking off a runner that a pitcher has used a move that makes him simulate a pitch to the plate. Other things like stepping off of the rubber with your non pivot foot, seperating your hands twice while on the rubber, dropping the ball while on the rubber, not coming to a stop with your hands in the stretch position are just a few things that are a balk. Best thing is for you to read a rule book about pitching or if you want to ask about something specific I will try to answer. Just remember if I wasn't there and it is about a judgement, I may not be able to give you a clear answer. Some things are in the eye of the beholder.

[sportsman28]

MrUmp1:

Bases loaded and the hitter walks forcing in a run.  The hitter jogs to first and jogs past first base.  Is he considered fair game or can he go past the bag just like a batted ball....

[MrUmp1]

I think he can but I am going to get a ruling from my rules guru out of Dallas

[MrUmp1]

Actually I just looked it up on the net and the rule book does not specify that you can only over run first on a hit, so yes you can go past first on a walk but make sure just like anytime else that you do not make any type of intenet to go tword 2nd. It is umpires judgement if a runner makes a move to show intent to go tword 2nd so make sure you turn around and walk right back to the bag.

[MrUmp1]

Now I am getting conflicting reports, Hold on I may have blown that call let me see if I can get a more definitive answer.

[MrUmp1]

Well this was a strange one. There is a book called the OBR which shows the difference in rules between all levels of play. Good book if you do multiple levels. In HIGH SCHOOL FEDERATION RULES you can not go past first on a walk. If you do you risk being put out. In MLB ball you can go past first base on a walk. No wonder there was confusion, depends on what book you look at. Would be nice if all levels had the same rules but some need to be different than the pros especially if it involves safety. I do not know why this one rule about a walk is different.

[rbi12]

Mr. Ump1,

When weather becomes an issue, does the umpire clear the field when he hears thunder?

Thanks.

[westend1]

OK.  Runners on 1st and 3rd.  Coach calls timeout and infield gets together.  They successfully do the hidden ball trick, giving the ball to the 3rd baseman.  Pitcher takes the mound(but maybe not on rubber,that is disputed among the witnesses).  Runner at 3rd is tagged out when he leads off.  If pitcher was on rubber, i assume it is a balk.  Real question is, when does play resume after a timeout?  Can the runner be tagged out before the home ump signals the pitcher that play has resumed?

[GTBBaseball]

Westend -
Play should not resume till pitcher toes rubber, EVEN IF PLAY IS RESUMED, if the pitcher gets anywhere "inside" the dirt circle "without" the ball, consider it a balk.
Go utube "LSU-UC-Irvine" in regional hidden ball trick whereby Maineiri goes ballistic and Sanchez gets tossed... Play was live after ground ball but notice where pitcher is standing....
Thats just bad umpiring to grant "Live Ball" before a pitcher gets to the mound....

Sportsman28 - A Batter who is walked can "NOT" pass the bag, if that was the case all runners would be allowed the same luxury, it would be the same as a visit to the mound on ball 4, the ump will NOT grant it till the batter reaches contact with the 1st base bag....  ball 4 grants a batter and all runners "90 foot advancement", not 91 feet even if that means foul territory, that doesnt matter....
Professionally baseball allows it which is odd, yet grass roots baseball does not permit it....

Fackler

[HSB&Rangers]

Mr. Ump will probably confirm this, but the new NFHS rule is that the game must be suspended for 30 minutes from seeing lightning or hearing thunder. Each successive occurrence results in resetting the 30 minute clock. Not supposed to rely on lightning detectors anymore. Teams are supposed to leave the field...not really supposed to even be in the dugout. I guess the bus is where is the NFHS wants them to go.