Question for my fellow umpires

[Ace]

Would you do it in this situation?

You are home team. You are down in the score. 2 outs. Nobody on base. 30 seconds on the clock. The opposing team is doing everything they can to stall and run time off the clock so that a new inning will not start thus giving your team another 3 outs to catch up rather than the 1 remaining in that inning?

I see this quite often in the timed games. The responses I'm getting are really surprising me.

This just happened to us last Saturday, only we had a runner on first base. Two outs, we were down a run, we were home team, and the other coach calls time to stall. No big deal, thats his job. During his time out I tell the base ump that my runner will be stepping off first base to kill the inning. Its a simple trade of one out, for three outs.

If the score was 12 to 11, maybe I take my chance on scoring the runner from first with two outs, but this was a well played low scoring game.

We held them the next inning, we got two runners on, then lost. Turns out it was the wrong call on my part.

[Sheriff10]

I appreciate the time you took to respond. While I generally agree with the philosophy of your thoughts regarding the clock management, I was asking specifically if the act I described was reason to call her out and was it somewhere in the ASA rulebook.

I have seen teams play against other teams where there was spectacular defense, excellent pitching, close plays, etc. The coach on the losing end of a 1-0 score with little time remaining is simply trying to give his girls another shot at a comeback. You can view it as a shortcoming in his coaching or the girls play, or you can just say they have played an excellent game against a very good team and they are battling to try to win while up against a clock.

I appreciate the replies. I will take that my call was correct in that I made no call when she simply touch home plate without crossing completely over or contacting the ball with her bat.

[MTR]

I appreciate the replies. I will take that my call was correct in that I made no call when she simply touch home plate without crossing completely over or contacting the ball with her bat.

Well, by rule, you cannot allow a pitch.

By rule, the batter simply needs to contact the ball with a foot touching any part of the plate or completely out of the BB, not necessarily "crossing completely over" the plate.

If you are referring to changing BBs, that is a completely different situation.

[skahtboi]

I appreciate the time you took to respond. While I generally agree with the philosophy of your thoughts regarding the clock management, I was asking specifically if the act I described was reason to call her out and was it somewhere in the ASA rulebook.

I have seen teams play against other teams where there was spectacular defense, excellent pitching, close plays, etc. The coach on the losing end of a 1-0 score with little time remaining is simply trying to give his girls another shot at a comeback. You can view it as a shortcoming in his coaching or the girls play, or you can just say they have played an excellent game against a very good team and they are battling to try to win while up against a clock.

I appreciate the replies. I will take that my call was correct in that I made no call when she simply touch home plate without crossing completely over or contacting the ball with her bat.

You are not finding anything about "calling an out" in this situation in the book, because it isn't there. Mike(MTR) has already pointed out that, as stated in your OP, about the only thing you can do is to hold up the pitch until the batter is completely in the box. If she doesn't comply within the prescribed amount of time, then call the strike. By that time, you will have probably burnt the remaining time on the clock. If not, then call time, and inform the coach that is option is to make the batter comply or face the penalty of a forfeit. By the time that discussion is complete, then surely your time will have passed and you will have a game as soon as the at bat is finished!

[GIMNEPIWO]

I appreciate the replies. I will take that my call was correct in that I made no call when she simply touch home plate without crossing completely over or contacting the ball with her bat.

Well, by rule, you cannot allow a pitch.

By rule, the batter simply needs to contact the ball with a foot touching any part of the plate or completely out of the BB, not necessarily "crossing completely over" the plate.

If you are referring to changing BBs, that is a completely different situation.

Sheriff ... MTR went, in his last sentence where I was going to take this next ... I highlighted in case it was missed ...

[Sheriff10]

Here are the only references to my situation in the ASA manual:

Rule 7 Section 3 para E "The batter shall not step directly in front of the catcher to the other batter's box while the pitcher is taking the signal or anytime thereafter prior to the release of the pitch."

EFFECT: The ball is dead, the batter is out and runners may not advance.

Rule 7 Section 6 para E The batter is out when any part of a foot is touching home plate at the time the ball makes contact with the bat"

My OP simply asked if there was any other reference in the book requiring the batter to be called out simply by place her foot on the plate while the pitcher was in the pitching position. I found nothing and all who replied have agreed. I properly did not call the batter out. I just wanted to "check my math"

Thanks.

[GIMNEPIWO]

Here are the only references to my situation in the ASA manual:

Rule 7 Section 3 para E "The batter shall not step directly in front of the catcher to the other batter's box while the pitcher is taking the signal or anytime thereafter prior to the release of the pitch."

EFFECT: The ball is dead, the batter is out and runners may not advance.

Rule 7 Section 6 para E The batter is out when any part of a foot is touching home plate at the time the ball makes contact with the bat"

My OP simply asked if there was any other reference in the book requiring the batter to be called out simply by place her foot on the plate while the pitcher was in the pitching position. I found nothing and all who replied have agreed. I properly did not call the batter out. I just wanted to "check my math"

Thanks.

Myself and others say you called it correctly ... and some of the alternative responses are because we may have been over diagnosing your question ... much of that may have been because myself, as well as others, may have thought you were not actually a Blue looking for validation, but rather a Coach or Parent looking for ammo ... Once your screen name has been seen around here for a while and peeps know where you are coming from, you will still be abused but maybe deserve it more

[Bretman]

Myself and others say you called it correctly ... and some of the alternative responses are because we may have been over diagnosing your question ... much of that may have been because myself, as well as others, may have thought you were not actually a Blue looking for validation, but rather a Coach or Parent looking for ammo ...

What threw me off was that you were getting "split answers" from other umpires over something that is a pretty basic rule. That being the case, I wasn't sure if you were specifically asking about: Stepping on the plate prior to the pitch; Coaching tactics for when you're on the short end of the stick with a time limit approaching, or; How an umpire should approach situations like this from a game management angle.

So I tried to cover all those bases!

[softballdadcoach]

As a coach, in this situation where I am home team, I am losing, have 2 outs, and the batter is at the bottom of my lineup I might tell my batter to intentionally make 3 'strikes' (intentianal missed swings) or have a runner leave base early so as to have a chance in another inning. It is a hard call, and you run the risk of crushing the spirit of a younger girl currently at the plate. I have only done it once, usually I take my chances with whomever is at the plate and keep playing the game...

[Sheriff10]

As a coach, in this situation where I am home team, I am losing, have 2 outs, and the batter is at the bottom of my lineup I might tell my batter to intentionally make 3 'strikes' (intentianal missed swings) or have a runner leave base early so as to have a chance in another inning. It is a hard call, and you run the risk of crushing the spirit of a younger girl currently at the plate. I have only done it once, usually I take my chances with whomever is at the plate and keep playing the game...

I coached for many years. I now umpire. When parents pay the money they do for their DD to play at this level, the expect the coach to do everything he can, within the confines of the rules, to win. In doing so, it gives their team another chance to win and move on to play another game.

I don't think having a girl step across the plate while the pitcher is in the pitching position, with her knowing WHY she is doing it, would crush her spirit. As long as the clock is a game factor, most coaches will use tactics to use it to their advantage.