14&under asa girls fastpitch
Question
bases loaded two outs ,dropped third strike. batter runs. that puts four runners on base. shouldnt that make it a force at home. so catcher touches home inning over. thank you,great site.....coach bill
Answer
Thanks for the question Bill, this is a good one.
I had to break out the ASA 2005-2006 Casebook for an example of the correct call here. As with most rules, the most obvious call is usually the correct one.
The case book says, "Play 8.1-7 (Fast Pitch Only) R1 on 3B, R2 ON 2B, R3 ON 1B with two outs. The batter misses a third strike. The catcher drops the ball but recovers in time to tag home plate. RULING: R1 is out. Since there are two outs, the batter is not out on the dropped third strike. As a result, the three base runners are forced to advance and the catcher's tag of the plate retires the side. (Rule 8-1B, 1-FORCE OUT)"
So you can see in this situation, a dropped third strike FORCES the runners to new bases and creates a FORCE PLAY at home.
Thanks for the question!
Rich
A couple of softball rules
1st base footwork