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Online now: 3 members: 3RRR, Emmitt, Sunshine22; 30 anonymousDiscussions in message board topic: Rules of the game
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Is the infield fly rule based on physical ability to catch the ball?» Turbobob: What circumstances does the physical ability or inability of the ...»B.J.: Turbo... you just have to judge the play itself.. that being said if ... »lb16: Ump got it right on this one by your description of play. »titanhd: UMPIRE GOT IT RIGHT!???? when first and second are occupied or ... »stick8: Generally that’s true Floyd but there are situations where the rule ... »B.J.: titanhd.. the rule also says with ordinary effort.. how does an ... »lb16: titanhd as usual not reading the whole description of the rule "A ... »Garocket: If you are going to judge the defensive players you will also have to ... |
7 | May 25, 2018 | 305 |
Rules Question - Player being tossed (Milwaukee Tourney)» dug8: Looking to get clarification on a ruling - 2 outs and runner on ...»DaveDowell: dug8 ... Assuming we have all of the facts despite not being there, ... »B.J.: Dave, question.. I know an ejected player can be replaced by an ... »DaveDowell: If he was his own runner (and not a CR), a substitute or CR could run ... »dug8: Dave - Thanks for stating other scenarios that I may not have thought ... »DaveDowell: "Probably" a good substitution, but only if the "next man up" is a ... »B.J.: Dave, an injured CR can be replaced with another CR he does not need ... »DaveDowell: Opppsss ... My bad and your good catch! »Nancy Allen: In all my years officiating, I have only had to eject 2 in the game ... »stick8: Questions for BJ or Dave Extra inning, last batter to be up the ... »B.J.: stick.. the runner must advance to 3rd before getting a CR.. and yes ... »B.J.: stick.. also on the runner who starts at 2nd if for some unknown ... »stick8: Thanks BJ. I wasn’t sure about the two runners at the same time. |
12 | May 25, 2018 | 686 |
Field players using mitts instead of a gloves on defense.» Steve in Tucson: Our team recently played an SSUSA non-sanctioned tournament in ...»Panther: Steve, See the Summary of Significant Rule Changes ... »k man: Steve, on the main message board there are 3 sections in pink that ... »DaveDowell: Steve ... We print the "hard copy" Rulebook every other year, and ... »Dbax: Curious as to the reasoning behind this change? »DaveDowell: Dbax ... The "allow mitts for all players" change [1] brought SSUSA ... »Dbax: Thanks Dave. I see some players with 15" gloves now. Are they legal? ... »Jawood: The bigger, the better! It's survival in the field with these bats! »Steve in Tucson: Thank you all for the confirmation. This was a looooooong discussion ... »vquinton21: I'm sorry but whether it's 15 inch glove, a mitt, a couch cushion.. ... »DaveDowell: VQ ... A long time ago, a guy who I thought was an "old guy", but ... |
10 | May 21, 2018 | 591 |
Commitment line» Mike Igneri: Yesterday as a third baseman, I chased the runner toward home. He ...»DaveDowell: SAFE is the correct call ... The rule prohibits a tag on the home ... »OMD: Another scenario - (local league - self umpped) runner heading home ... »k man: OMG OMD You must be afraid of commitment! Cannot return to 3rd ... »B.J.: OMD.. no, once the runner crosses the commitment line he must ... »DCPete: OMD don't quit your day job. There's a reason it's called the Commit ... »OMD: Not really afraid of commitment - you can ask any of my 6 ex-wives or ... »stick8: Mike, allow me to further specify on your scenario. As Dave correctly ... »jl1919: Does the runner have to be completely over the commitment line? »DaveDowell: NOPE ... One foot "down", on or beyond the commitment line, triggers ... |
9 | May 16, 2018 | 1065 |
Pitching rules- use of a windup» Itallion Stallion: I have a question regarding pitching rules section 6.7D. It says the ...»B.J.: what that means is that once you start your forward motion you can ... »Turbobob: Another interesting aspect with Section 6.7 F "The pitcher must ... »DaveDowell: Turbobob ... Yes, you are correct ... One time (only) past the hip is ... |
3 | May 15, 2018 | 435 |
Strike board/mat» OZ40: Was watching a game today in the middle division of our league. We ...»k man: Rule 7.4B Dead Ball »OZ40: I don't know if I gave enough information, the batter actually did ... »B.J.: oz.. the entire strike mat is now in fair territory so if the batter ... »k man: BJ is correct, I was thinking swing and miss, dead ball. Otherwise ... »OZ40: My thought exactly...great minds thinking alike! |
5 | May 15, 2018 | 451 |
Runner's right to the base» Wayne 37: This happened a few weeks ago. There was a runner on 3B. The ...»B.J.: Wayne, the runner on the bag does not have to move to get out of the ... »DCPete: Your "contention" is entirely incorrect; try looking up the word ... »Wayne 37: DC Pete Apparently you don't have any judgment capabilities. ... »B.J.: Wayne, in your original scenario you say that the runner was ... »DCPete: Ok Wayne how about SSUSA Rule 8.2 C.1 - "If the Runner is hit with a ... »Wayne 37: DCPete, I assume you mean 8.2(1)C which reads: If the ... »DCPete: Wayne, have no idea what you're talking about; here's the phrase from ... »Wayne 37: ...........and HENCE the keys words C. WHEN HE (BATTER) HITS A FAIR ... »Wayne 37: DEFINITIONS: 1.45 INTERFERENCE. Interference is the act of an ... »B.J.: Wayne, AGAIN the base is a "safe haven" for the runner and he does ... »DCPete: Come on Wayne, a runner standing on a base is NOT Impeding or ... »grayhitter59: So let me get this straight, you want the runner who is on the bag to ... »The Screamer5: BJ is spot on. The runner does not have to give up his legal position ... »DaveDowell: TS5 ... There simply are some plays where, by definition, the ... »Wayne 37: And why no rule citation? Please provide that and maybe we can get ... »lb16: Wayne 37, why don't you cite the rule that says runner has to while ... »Wayne 37: In reply to your post, 1b16, I posted the definition of interference ... »lb16: Key sentence in rule " A base runner MUST avoid a fielder making a ... »B.J.: Wayne, hopefully this will show you that the runner doesn't have to ... »Wayne 37: Dearest lb16, Batted ball hits runner on base, the runner is out ... »B.J.: Wayne, As far as having to umpire I have been umpiring senior ... »DCPete: Sorry Wayne but your "judgment" doesn't have priority over the actual ... »yerwombat: It sounds like the umpire didn't see any interference »lb16: Wayne 37- B.J. just cited rule that applies to this situation, and ... »mad dog: hey wayne....please tell me where that runner should stand on the ... »lb16: mad dog- Your'e wasting your time with him on this one. For some ... »stick8: Wayne37, this is a judgement call. The runner at third, as BJ ... »Wayne 37: Here is the thing. Baseball rules are often worded poorly. This one ... »AJC: Wayne, with all due respect, both of your rule interpretations in the ... »B.J.: Dave, PLEASE, it's time to close this post.. nothing more can be ... »yerwombat: Your premise that the baseruuner is causing contact is flawed. The ... »Wayne 37: You don't have to close it, Dave. Others might want to chime in. I ... »stick8: Wayne37, judgement is judgement and only you as the umpire have to ... »Wayne 37: It is certainly safe to say some people don't mind getting trampled ... »stick8: Wayne that’s fine if you get out of the way and stay on the bag. Most ... »DaveDowell: Wayne 37 ... B.J. and stick8 are correct ... Your entire argument ... »Wayne 37: Dave and others......where does it state SPECIFICALLY what is ... »DaveDowell: Wayne 37 ... As B.J. was so kind to report earlier, I'm going to give ... »mck71: Sorry Dave, I have to add this 1 question: Wayne - what happens IF ... »Nancy Allen: BJ, after having a very long weekend and having a very long week ... »B.J.: Thx. Nancy I look forward to it »txnighttrain: This is an umpire judgement call. I umpire and rarely has that ever ... »Omar Khayyam: Here are a few potential scenarios as to why the runner should just ... »lb16: After all has been said and done this Wayne 37 clown still thinks a ... »DaveDowell: Deafening silence thus far, interrupted only by the occasional chirp ... »B.J.: chirp.. |
46 | May 1, 2018 | 1525 |
Courtesy Runner on field before Time Out» Jerry66: What is the umpire's call when a would-be courtesy runs on the ...»B.J.: Jerry, unless the c/r caused some confusion allowing another runner ... »Nancy Allen: Actually I have had more potential issues with a runner stepping off ... »DaveDowell: But you have to tip your cap to the 3B coach for buying into the ... »Nancy Allen: Dave, it's hard to tip your cap when your ponytail is through the ... |
4 | May 1, 2018 | 326 |
Runner can advance» Wayne 37: What are the three situation a base runner can advance on a fly ball?»SMOKE707: Over the fence home run Catch and carry Tag up »Wayne 37: Smoke, the first two you mentioned are dead ball awards. I'm looking ... »DaveDowell: Infield fly rule (at runner's risk) »Wayne 37: Dave, I will accept your answer as it pertains to a fair batted ball. ... »B.J.: as soon as it is hit »DaveDowell: We'll feed these one at a time to see if anyone else jumps in! ... ... »B.J.: yes but then it becomes as wayne says.. awarded bases (3) or 4 if the ... »DaveDowell: Agreed, B.J. ... But my answer is correct and completely responsive ... »DaveDowell: B.J ... And here's another correct answer to the question as asked ... »Wayne 37: Since you can't answer the question, I'll give you the answer. 1) ... »DaveDowell: Plus the other three I mentioned, all of which you may be able to ... »Wayne 37: B.J. writes: yes but then it becomes as wayne says.. awarded bases ... »B.J.: lmao wayne you just wont give up.. the difference in the 4 base ... »txnighttrain: Just remember, you can tag up when the ball is first touched, not ... »Nancy Allen: Actually technically a runner can advance whenever they want. They ... »Nancy Allen: Yes, BJ, or by being off the bag and being tagged of course. I ... |
16 | April 30, 2018 | 405 |
Runner on first base» baseballbill: Runner is on first base and a ground ball is hit at the first base ...»crusher: Runner hurt and falls down while still touching 1st. The first ... »B.J.: bill.. again any play like this is umpire judgement.. did the runner ... »baseballbill: Thanks B.J. »Wayne 37: No judgment of interference is necessary. Batted ball hit runner, ... »stick8: Baseballbill, SSUSA, dead ball batter is awarded first and any ... »Wayne 37: stick8, what scenario would a baserunner be force to advance in SSUSA? »stick8: Wayne37, I’m not sure what you’re getting at with the question but ... »Wayne 37: Stick8, I'm asking when a runner is forced to advance when a runner ... »OMD: Another question - runner on first - 1st basemen is playing 2-3 steps ... »B.J.: OMD .. The defense can position there self in the baseline before a ... »coop3636: Correct me if I am wrong, but... If a runner is hit by a ball while ... »B.J.: coop.. if a runner is hit by a batted ball while in contact with a ... »stick8: Wayne I have an idea but I’m not totally sure what baseballbill meant ... »stick8: Coop3636 thats the rule in usssa. BJ stated the correct rule in ... »Wayne 37: Dang, I've never heard of a ruleset where a runner being hit with a ... »B.J.: wayne.. lol.. the rule set discussed on this forum should be SSUSA ... »stick8: Wayne, I think we can all agree if the runner is off the bag and gets ... |
17 | April 30, 2018 | 574 |
Dead ball ground rule double situation.» baseballbill: Umpire ruled dead ball ground rule double. Batter stopped at first ...»SSUSA Staff: This case should probably let common sense (which isn't all that ... »baseballbill: Thanks, That exactly what the umpire ruled. »DaveDowell: baseballbill ... There's a bit of a (meritorious) dissenting opinion ... »marcster13: Always amazes me that guys will take any shortcut they can. Aren't we ... »smitty63: wow, Just when I thought i was starting to figure out what a runner ... »B.J.: Dave's 2nd answer is the one I would go with.. A batter that has been ... »stick8: Baseball bill was this in a house league or a sanctioned ssusa ... »B.J.: stick8 on your situation a few years ago.. Just so you know for in ... »txnighttrain: First line of Rule 8.4(1) "Each batter must reach first base without ... »stick8: BJ, as always you are correct on that. I was playing middle in a 5 ... »BillC48: Similar situation - Batter hits the ball over the fence for a home ... »B.J.: SSUSA has hit and sit with no requirement to touch 1st base.. there ... »DaveDowell: B.J. ... While I agree with you conceptually, the "hit-and-sit" ... »fennellwg: My condolences Dave D. This is probably the third time in as many ... »DaveDowell: Thanks Bill ... It's that time of the year when there's not enough ... »baseballbill: Dave: You said it earlier in the message: COMMON SENSE should prevail ... »stick8: BillC48, if this scenario was in an ssusa tournament no penalty. ... »Wayne 37: Dave Dowell A homerun is the only four base award. How are you ... »Wayne 37: Sorry, left this out. In this situation, I maintain the batter ... »B.J.: Wayne.. 8.4(7) • FOUR-BASE AWARD Any fair ball touched by a player ... »Wayne 37: B.J. ~ A 440 ft. moonshot over the fence is also a four base award as ... »B.J.: Wayne, you asked if there was another 4 base award that you didn't ... »Wayne 37: B.J. ~ you can't award four bases without it being a HR even if it ... »B.J.: wayne.. yes you can and here is a example.. a fly ball hit to the ... »k man: This one happened in our tournament game in VA Beach last week. 5th ... »Wayne 37: Technically, you have to wait until the first batter being walked has ... »SSUSA Staff: §8.2 • BATTER BECOMES A BATTER-RUNNER A. ... B. When four pitched ... »Wayne 37: I can see the ball being dead in slow pitch due to the no steal rule ... »k man: BTW, in our game having the 1st intentional runner called out would ... »stick8: Wayne37, I’m not sure about ssusa but in usssa if an outfielder has a ... |
30 | April 26, 2018 | 1276 |
double bag at 1st» k man: Just curious about rule interpretation for rule 2.3C4 Once a ...»B.J.: K.. once the runner has "attained" 1st base the double base is ... »SSUSA Staff: B.J. has it ... The double-bag rule applies only to a batter-runner ... »k man: Thanks BJ and Staff, I've just assumed the managing role so I am ... |
3 | April 21, 2018 | 196 |
Foul Tip vs Foul Ball» txnighttrain: Rule 1.29 Foul Tip: A foul tip is a batted ball that goes directly ...»Krinkles: I umpired USSSA games and the caught foul ball rule was that any ... »B.J.: TX... read the rule again the end of the last sentence before the ... »txnighttrain: The effect actually says "the ball is dead on all foul tips and the ... »B.J.: TX.. yes you are correct it does.. and the same result for a foul ... »SSUSA Staff: A foul tip is NOT a foul ball, by definition (see below) and, ... »STL0: A batter doesn't deserve another swing if you hit a "foul tip". That ... »B.J.: Dave.. Then I'm not reading this rule correctly... Any batted ball ... »SSUSA Staff: B.J. ... Don't over read Definition §1.29 ... The FIRST sentence ... »Wayne 37: Really no reason to have a foul tip rule in softball. All that's ... |
9 | April 21, 2018 | 766 |
Games between different rankings» BubbleHead96: I understand the equalizer rule, however how do the runs work with M+ ...»BruceAZ: BH, the way it went for us in the Spring Worlds when we, a M team ... »TimMcElroy: Whenever there is an equalizer rule in effect, the teams play to the ... |
2 | March 30, 2018 | 354 |
safety bag» grayhitter59: Staff I have a questions due to rule changes. When a ball never ...»SSUSA Staff: grayhitter59 ... In response to your statement and questions ... »grayhitter59: thank you »DieselDan: 5) Can the pitcher kick the ball over to the 1st baseman? Not ... »DaveDowell: Yep ... "Kick saves" are permitted (or at least not prohibited!) ... |
4 | March 26, 2018 | 518 |
legal players» bucs15: Over the last couple years I've seen more and more players playing on ...»SSUSA Staff: bucs15 ... Over the past couple of years, there have been some ... »birdie: bucs15, Just out of curiosity, have you notice this in all 3 ... |
2 | March 25, 2018 | 755 |
Ground rule double/courtesy runner» Randall: We had a situation where the batter/runner hit a ball off the fence ...»stick8: Randall, was this in a sanctioned SSUSA tournament or a house league? ... »Linknblue: You have to touch the bases. If the defense "appealed properly" then ... »B.J.: Linknblue.. actually the appeal can be made by any defensive player |
3 | March 25, 2018 | 367 |
pitcher getting hit» maskedman: i just watched a senior game on youtube this morning from 2016 ...»maskedman: my mistake. wrong game. it was last year SA CRUSH vs TX VETS. same ... »DaveDowell: maskedman ... Take a look at Rule Book §6.18 • INTENTIONALLY HITTING ... »B94: I don't think anyone hits up the middle intentionally at the pitcher, ... »Fred S: B94: Unfortunately there are some. We had two in our league at one ... »stick8: This rule is akin to pitchers in Major League Baseball. If a pitcher ... »softball4b: Bat control fades as with your physical abilities with age. There ... »SOFTBALLNUTZ: softball4b I agree with you 100% A few years ago several ... »DaveDowell: Mike and NUTZ ... Reminder of the four modern stages of bat control ... »softball4b: There is bat control and then there is controlling everything ... »The Screamer5: Maskedman, I was there at the game you referenced. It was a one day ... »SOFTBALLNUTZ: I welcome you to come to Lorenzi Park in Las Vegas to test out you ... »maskedman: it didnt appear to be intentional thats why i was curious.ive pitched ... »Fleck14: I have found that one of most helpful things an umpire can do to ... »DaveDowell: Fleck14 ... BINGO! ... You nailed it ... This should be an area of ... »B.J.: Fleck you are correct not enough umpires enforce this.. that is why ... »ESteiner25: As a pitcher, I understand the risk of standing in the middle of the ... »garyheifner: There is a very powerful hitter we see often who goes hard middle, ... »West Coast Mayhem #00: I have no problem enforcing players in the box. My issue is, you ... »Jon44: It seems all batters boxes are not created equal. For example, the ... |
19 | March 9, 2018 | 1798 |
MITTS» garyheifner: If I read the rule changes correctly, anyone can now wear a mitt. I ...»Omar Khayyam: As a pitcher and an older player, I have thought about using a mitt ... »txnighttrain: New rule permits any player on field to wear a mitt. »curveball: nighttrain I was under the ASSumption the mitt rule was added for ... »k man: ssusa added that any position can use a mitt effective 2018 while ... »curveball: Interesting K Man, thanks for the update. »txnighttrain: Curveball, you shouldn't ASSume someone is wrong until you read the ... »curveball: txassnighttrain, point well taken. (I book rooms in both early in the ... |
7 | March 9, 2018 | 852 |
Scorekeeping» 20boy1: In a recent tournament (Las Vegas). Western Nationals, a scoring ...»B.J.: the umpires on the field are in charge of keeping the score and as ... |
1 | March 4, 2018 | 388 |
