Good point. I should have factored playing shallow into the equation. It would have to be a more unusual combination of events…say, a shallower foul fly but with a very fast runner on third and the outfielder maybe having to make a catch with his back to home plate.
But in such a case, the outfielder would be better off not even making the attempt, assuming the ball will clearly land foul. Then the only question would be overcoming his instinctive moving toward the ball.
They do indeed. All playoff games played at the SkyDome - one assumes it’ll never happen again - were played with the roof closed.
The fireworks are set off on trusses along the main roof section, which is almost 300 feet off the field; the stadium is genuinely immense.
I used to go to games with a friend who was a mathematics professor. He summed it up this way: “The fundamental equilibrium of baseball is preserved by the fact that pitchers are smart and hitters are stupid.”
The situation Chord asked about happened in a Red Sox game a few years ago. The RF let it drop, for that very reason.
Jtur88, I apologize but I edited your post accidentally, instead of replying to it, and deleted your second sentence.