Of course in baseball, you occasionally see players reach over the fence in foul territory to catch a foul ball for an out.
Is a player allowed to actually jump over the fence into the stands to catch a foul ball? Or jump over the bullpen fence, anyway?
The answer’s no, right?
I believe a player can’t leave the field and then still catch a ball. Foul territory and the fence are considered part of the field, but not the stands. But it’s been a long time, I’m not sure I have that right.
No.
Major League Baseball rule 6.05 (a) says: “A fielder may reach into, but not step into, a dugout to make a catch, and if he holds the ball, the catch shall be allowed. A fielder, in order to make a catch on a foul ball nearing a dugout or other out-of-play area (such as the stands), must have one or both feet on or over the playing surface (including the lip of the dugout) and neither foot on the ground inside the dugout or in any other out-of-play area. Ball is in play, unless the fielder, after making a legal catch, falls into a dugout or other out-of-play area, in which case the ball is dead.”
Huh. I could have sworn I saw one of the Giants players, in the first inning of one of their NLDS games in San Francisco, make a spectacular catch that sent him over the dugout fence and into the laps of his teammates, figuratively speaking. But the catch was upheld, which would seem to violate the rule, yes?
(Disclaimer: I’ve slept [albeit only a little bit] since then, the Giants aren’t my team, and my memory may be skewed).
They can go over the fence, they just can’t land on the other side before the catch is made.
Also, I believe that if a fielder catches a foul ball but then falls into the dugout or stands, any runners who are already on base are entitled to a free base.
The answer is yes, a player may dive into the stands or a dugout to catch a foul ball. Note in the rule Intelligently cited that the player “must have one or both feet on or over the playing surface…” (emphasis added).
What you describe seems parallel, with the dugout in place of the stands. If he leaves his feet from the field, if neither foot touches the ground inside the dugout fence before the catch, and providing at least one foot is still over the field of play, then the catch is legal and an out is called.
Of course you may make a catch that sees you falling out of bounds. To put it in clearer English,
The Giants player caught the ball and THEN stepped out of bounds. In such a case if there are runners on base, the effect is the same as if the player caught the ball and then threw it out of bounds; runners advance a base.
Got’cha. Got, cough mixed up by the definition of “dead ball” there for a moment.
Just thought of this: if I’m a right (or left) fielder, trying to catch a deep foul ball near, but not in the stands, with one out and a runner on third tagging up in a close game, my best play is not to camp out under the ball and make the catch, but I should rather hang out for a bit away from where the ball is going, and try and make a full-speed running catch that lets me get carried into the stands afterwards, right?
(Running at the ball gives worst case, I miss the catch for no out, but no run, either on a foul ball; best case I get the out and no advancement because I’m in the stands and the ball is dead. If I go for the easy catch, then I get the out, but the runner tags and scores).
The best play may be not to try to catch the ball at all, unless you’re not certain it will stay foul. The famous World Series Game 6 between Boston and Cincinnati had a situation like this late in the game. IIRC, the left fielder did catch the ball and then threw out the runner trying to score.
As I understand it, the runner can’t tag and try to score on a ball that goes foul, right?
Incorrect. See rule 7.08 d. If a foul ball is caught for an out the runners can advance. Unless you mean a ball that *lands *in foul territory?
It’s not the same, because if a fielder throws a ball out of play, the runners advance two bases. If the fielder carries it out of play, it’s one base.
what if a catcher catches a ball but is separated from it by the mesh
I’m not sure what you mean by “mesh” nor if you are referring to any fielder catching the ball or the specific fielder called the catcher, but for a catch to be valid the fielder must securely hold the ball in his hand or his glove. He may not catch it in his hat, mask, shirt, or anything else. It may bounce off such items, e.g., his or another player’s hand, head (ouch), arm, or chest and still be caught.
Whether he has held it securely before being separated from it is a judgement call of the umpire.
I hope that answers your question