Interference and Obstruction | Little League Interference and or Obstruction
CoachMc writes "One of the most confusing and controversial aspects of baseball is a
situation where a defensive and offensive player either collide or
interfere with each other. We have seen many angry coaches and parents
over not understanding the rules of interference and obstruction in youth baseball.
Also, Many youth baseball umpires do not have full understanding of all
the rules. I'm not sure anyone does. But I would consider youth baseball interference and obstruction a common play occurrence that coaches and umpires should know and be able to explain.
Obstruction
Section 2.00 of the Little League Rule Book(which in be very extraordinary if some youth leagues varied from these rules for youth baseball interference and obstruction)
defines Obstruction as: “the act of a fielder who, while not in the act
of fielding the ball, impedes the progress of any runner.” Note that
there does not need to be contact between the players for there to be
obstruction. A fake tag which convinces a runner to slide into a base
when he could have reasonably been expected to advance is explicitly
defined as obstruction by the rule book. There is no requirement of
intent, either. A player who dives unsuccessfully for a ground ball and
remains on the ground, delaying the progress of a runner, could be
guilty of obstruction, as could a first baseman who stands at the
inside corner of first base despite it being clear that no play will be
made at first, causing the batter to adjust his/her path to second
base. This would also include a cut off or relay fielder who impedes
the runner in the eyes of the umpire.
Rule 7.06 addresses the consequences of obstruction. If a play is made
at the point of obstruction, the ball is immediately dead and all
runners are permitted to advance to where the umpire judges they
would’ve reached if obstruction did not occur. If no play is made at
the point of baseball obstruction, play is allowed to continue until
the play otherwise ends, and then the umpire calls time and adjusts the
positions of any runners to where the umpires believe they would’ve
reached if obstruction did not occur.
Interference
There are many forms of interference – we are focusing on the runner
and the defensive player on offensive interference.. where a runner
interferes with a fielder making a play. Rule 7.09(l) says it is
interference when “the runner fails to avoid a fielder who is
attempting to field a batted ball, or intentionally interferes with a
thrown ball …”
Note that unintentionally interfering with fielding a thrown ball is
not interference. The penalty for interference is generally that the
ball is immediately dead and the runner is out, although there are
several special cases.
Summary
First, a fielder always has the right to any place on the field to try
and field or make a play on a batted ball – no exceptions. However,
once he drops it, or misses the ball, it is no longer a batted ball.)
Second, the runner always has the right to the base path, except when
required to avoid a fielder in the act of fielding a batted ball, or if
a fielder is in possession of the ball and is waiting to make a tag,.
The only time a runner has to alter his running path is to avoid a
fielder making a play on a batted ball. (The base path is not
restricted to a straight line between the bases, either, but shall be
interpreted by the umpire as a path reasonably taken by a runner in
advancing in such a situation, such as “rounding” a base when advancing
to the next, or trying to advance to second after running through first
when an overthrow occurs.)"
