Ejection!
Those that know me likely know that I am a calm, level-headed person. It may come as a surprise, then, to know that at last night's co-ed recreational league softball game, I was ejected. Perhaps a first in the history of the league.
The umpire was being ridiculous all game long. Not on missed calls, but in enforcing petty, silly rules. He wouldn't let the pitcher pitch unless there was an on-deck batter in the on-deck circle. He made third-base coaches stand eight feet from the baseline. When I was coaching first, I picked up the infield practice ball that had been thrown in. The ump stopped the game, claiming that I couldn't coach first while holding a ball. Again, this is rec league.
Anyway, both teams were fed up with this guy. With two outs and a runner on second, a guy on our team hits a shot over the left fielfer. It's clearly going to be a home run -- no question. As the runner from second rounds third, our third-base coach pats him on the shoulder in congratulations. The ump calls the runner out because the third-base coach touched him. End of inning; no runs scored. I immediately say (in a riased voice, but not yelling), "How about letting US play the game?" He ejects me. The other team's captain comes over to me to tell me that this is ridiculous, and I then go to the ump and invite him to leave, and that the two teams will play on without him. There was some dissention in the other team, and the ump refused anyway, so our team took the field. I hung out on the bench. The ump stops our pitcher from starting and says that I have to leave the field completely and go into the parking lot. I told him I was staying put. He said that the game would be over, and I said, after looking at my teammates for some support, "Well, I guess it's over then." The ump then leaves, and the other team's captain agreed to keep on playing while calling our own balls & strikes. We got annihilated anyway, losing by the mercy rule. These guys kept hitting it over our heads, no matter how far back we played. Their #10 hitter hit it over the center field fence, which wasn't really a fence as much as it was a boundary for the outermost part of this park. Unbelievable.
Because I am a huge nerd, I went to see if the touching-is-an-out really is a rule. After all, don't coaches touch their players all the time? It's questionable, at least when looking at the NCAA softball rules, which seemed like a good place to look. Check out the last rule on page 97. Technically, the ball was in play, and maybe coaches don't touch their players while they're actually having to run around the bases. But the rule prohibits "assisting" a runner while the ball is in play. A mere pat on the back should not be considered assisting. Yet, the first given example of what is prohibited is "touch[ing]." On the other hand, the other examples of illegal assistance0 ("hold[ing]" and "push[ing]"), contemplate a much more active role of the couch rather than a mere touch. I still think the ump acted counter to the rules, but really, it doesn't matter. It just sucked.
The umpire was being ridiculous all game long. Not on missed calls, but in enforcing petty, silly rules. He wouldn't let the pitcher pitch unless there was an on-deck batter in the on-deck circle. He made third-base coaches stand eight feet from the baseline. When I was coaching first, I picked up the infield practice ball that had been thrown in. The ump stopped the game, claiming that I couldn't coach first while holding a ball. Again, this is rec league.
Anyway, both teams were fed up with this guy. With two outs and a runner on second, a guy on our team hits a shot over the left fielfer. It's clearly going to be a home run -- no question. As the runner from second rounds third, our third-base coach pats him on the shoulder in congratulations. The ump calls the runner out because the third-base coach touched him. End of inning; no runs scored. I immediately say (in a riased voice, but not yelling), "How about letting US play the game?" He ejects me. The other team's captain comes over to me to tell me that this is ridiculous, and I then go to the ump and invite him to leave, and that the two teams will play on without him. There was some dissention in the other team, and the ump refused anyway, so our team took the field. I hung out on the bench. The ump stops our pitcher from starting and says that I have to leave the field completely and go into the parking lot. I told him I was staying put. He said that the game would be over, and I said, after looking at my teammates for some support, "Well, I guess it's over then." The ump then leaves, and the other team's captain agreed to keep on playing while calling our own balls & strikes. We got annihilated anyway, losing by the mercy rule. These guys kept hitting it over our heads, no matter how far back we played. Their #10 hitter hit it over the center field fence, which wasn't really a fence as much as it was a boundary for the outermost part of this park. Unbelievable.
Because I am a huge nerd, I went to see if the touching-is-an-out really is a rule. After all, don't coaches touch their players all the time? It's questionable, at least when looking at the NCAA softball rules, which seemed like a good place to look. Check out the last rule on page 97. Technically, the ball was in play, and maybe coaches don't touch their players while they're actually having to run around the bases. But the rule prohibits "assisting" a runner while the ball is in play. A mere pat on the back should not be considered assisting. Yet, the first given example of what is prohibited is "touch[ing]." On the other hand, the other examples of illegal assistance0 ("hold[ing]" and "push[ing]"), contemplate a much more active role of the couch rather than a mere touch. I still think the ump acted counter to the rules, but really, it doesn't matter. It just sucked.
posted by Messiah at
5:05 PM
1 Comments:
I think that it's fairly intuitive that (at least in MLB), the 3B coach could not do what yours did. I mean, it's OK on a home run...but I've never seen a touch when the ball was in play, and would have assumed it was patently illegal. But to eject someone in a co-ed rec league game for it is absurd! Good story.
By
Archi, at 4:09 PM
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