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FAIR OR FOUL BALL RULE
Home plate is in fair
territory and is treated like the ground. There is nothing
special about it.
There is nothing special about the pitcher's rubber. It is part
of the ground. If a ball hits it and bounces foul before passing
first or third it is a foul ball.
Home plate and all the bases are in fair territory. Any batted
ball that touches first, second or third is a fair ball. A ball
that settles on home plate is a fair ball. A ball that hits home
plate first is NOT a FOUL ball.
Two different criteria apply to judging fair or foul balls:
Balls that FIRST touch the ground or a player in the OUTFIELD
and
Balls that FIRST touch the ground or a player in the INFIELD
A ball that
first touches
the ground, or a player or an umpire in the
outfield,
is judged to be fair or
foul based upon the relationship between the ball and the line
at the instant the ball touches the ground, player or umpire.
The location of the player or umpire's body or feet have nothing
to do with the judgment. It's where the ball is in relation to
the ground. The outfield is fair and foul territory beyond first
or third base.
A ball that
first touches
the ground in the
infield
(in fair or foul territory)
before first or third base, is not judged to be fair or foul
until it stops or is touched by a player or an umpire or bounds
beyond first or third base, or touches first or third base, or
passes over first or third base. If it hits the ground on the
home plate side of first or third and passes over the base on
its way to the outfield; it is a fair ball. It may first touch
the ground in foul territory and it is still not judged fair or
foul until it stops or is touched or goes beyond first or third
base. Example: ball touches the ground behind home plate, does
not touch the catcher and spins into fair ground and stops. This
is a FAIR ball.
A fair or foul ball shall be judgedaccording to the
relative position of the ball and the foul line, and not as to
whether the fielder is on fair or foul territory
at the time he touches the
ball. The instant the ball is touched you draw an imaginary
vertical line from the ball to the ground. If the imaginary line
touches foul territory, it is a foul ball, if fair territory, it
is a fair ball. The position of the fielder's feet or body is of
no consequence.
The ball may roll back and
forth (within the infield) between fair and foul territory an
unlimited number of times, and it is not declared fair or foul
until it stops or is touched. Where the ball is when it is
touched determines the judgment,
not
where the fielder is.
The infield is both fair and foul territory within first and
third base.
A pitch that hits the batter's bat is a batted ball. It doesn't
matter whether he was swinging at the pitch or ducking away from
it. The ball is judged fair or foul based on what happens to it
after it hits the bat, based on the previously stated
explanations.
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7.08 (a) "Any runner is out
when ... (3) the runner does not slide OR attempt to get around
a fielder who has the ball AND is waiting to make the tag"
Clarification
There is no "must slide"
rule. When the fielder has the ball in his possession, the
runner has two choices; slide OR attempt to get around the
fielder. The key phrases here are: "or
attempt to get around"
and "has the ball
waiting to make the tag."
He may
NOT
deliberately or maliciously contact the fielder,
but he is NOT
required to slide.
If the fielder does not
have possession but, is in the act of fielding, and contact is
made, it is a no-call unless the contact was intentional and
malicious.
The purpose of the rule is to prohibit the runner from deliberately crashing into a defender who has the ball,
for the sole purpose of knocking the ball loose, because the
runner knows he is going to be out otherwise.
In attempting to get around a fielder who has the ball waiting
to make the tag, the runner must not run more than 3 feet to
either side of a line that goes between bases. If he does, he is
out for violation of rule 7.08 (a) (1)
Rule 7.08 is on page 71 in the 2007 Baseball Rule Book.
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Offensive Interference 2a (pg 51)– Offensive interference is an act by a member of the team at
bat which interferes with, obstructs, impedes, hinders or
confuses any fielder attempting to make a play. If the umpire
declares the batter, batter-runner or a runner out for
interference, all other runners shall return to the last base
that was, in the judgment of the umpire, legally touch at the
time of the interference, unless otherwise provided by these
rules.
Clarification
The runner has a right to an
unobstructed path while running the bases. The fielder has a
right to make a play without interference. The runner has the
right to the base path except when a fielder is
attempting to field a BATTED BALL or has
possession of the ball.
Sometimes when the runner and
fielder collide, no penalty should be applied. The umpire must
judge whether someone's rights were violated. This applies
mainly to plays where the throw and the runner are arriving at
the same time. There is no such thing as a must slide
rule. When a runner
collides with a fielder
attempting to field a
batted ball,
he should be called out in
almost all cases. If the runner collides with a fielder
attempting
to catch a throw,
the umpire must first
decide if the collision was intentional, then decide if the act
interfered with, impeded, hindered or confused the fielder. If
the runner is legally in the base path and simply running the
bases when a collision occurs, he is not out. If he deviates
from his path and/or intentionally interferes, or makes
malicious contact, he is out. In sliding to a base he must be
able to reach out and touch the base with his hand. If he slides
into a fielder while more than an arms length from the base it
is interference if the fielder is attempting a play. If a runner
goes into a
base standing up
AND
this act hindered the
fielder in an attempt to make a play, it is interference. This
hindrance would have to be by contacting the fielder while in
the act of throwing or attempting to throw. If the fielder makes
no attempt to throw simply because the runner is in the base
line standing up; this is NOT interference. If he does not
slide, he must not touch the fielder while he is attempting a
play. If the runner has already been put out before he
interferes, then the ball is dead and the runner being played
upon is also out.
If the throw is almost to the fielder and a collision occurs; it
is not interference or obstruction. It is a collision and
neither player is penalized. However, intentional, malicious
contact is never allowed. If the runner does it, call him out
and eject him. If the fielder does it, award the base to the
runner and eject the fielder.
The fielder should not be in
the base path without possession of the ball. If he is it is
obstruction. Anytime a runner deliberately and maliciously
crashes into a fielder he should be ejected for unsportsmanlike
conduct. However, if a close play occurs and the runner does not
slide and makes incidental contact with the defender before he
has the ball, no call should be made. If the defender has the
ball, the umpire should judge as to whether the runner made an
attempt to get around the fielder. If he did, he should not be
called out simply because he did not slide or made contact.
In attempting to get around a fielder who has the ball waiting
to make the tag, the runner must not run more than 3 feet to
either side of a line that goes between bases. If he does, he is
out for violation of rule 7.08 (a) (1)
If the defender does not have possession of the ball, and a
collision occurs as he steps into the path of the runner as he
attempts to catch a thrown ball, there is no penalty, unless the
umpire judges the collision to be deliberate and malicious.
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