Umpire drilled by line drive, what they didn't tell you.

It might have been St. Patrick's Day but MLB umpire Brad Myers was anything but lucky on Monday when he couldn't avoid a line drive off the bat of The Reds Brandon Phillips during a spring training game. The painful-to-watch video, currently making the rounds, shows Myers was in a dangerous position with a right handed batter up so let me explain a few things that were left out of most national reports of the mishap.



With runners on first and second, and a four-man umpire crew, the second base umpire would normally be in a safer spot, deeper and closer to second base, on either side of the bag (his choice), but since the game was being used to test instant replay, there were only three umpires on the field and the fourth in the production truck.  (Once the regular season games begin, replay review will take place in MLB's NYC headquarters.) With only three umpires, in that situation, Myers, the third base ump, was responsible for most calls at second and third so he was positioned closer to third, in a precarious spot where the shortstop might play if the infield were drawn in - as the video shows, he barely had time to react and couldn't avoid the laser off the bat of Phillips.

(See the video by clicking HERE.)

Now, what none of the reports also failed to mention is the ruling on this.  While it was obvious that play stopped, the umpire is treated the same way as a runner would in this situation, so it is a case of interference, but not necessarily always (this is today's lesson).  This is not a dodge-ball type rule that says a runner is out if hit by a batted ball; the real infraction is interference because the person who was hit robbed the fielder of an opportunity to field the ball. What most serious baseball fans don't realize is that if the fielder already had an opportunity to make a play, the play most likely should be allowed to continue after hitting the runner/umpire and the ball would still be considered "live."  Three examples of this are:

1. The ball hits the first base umpire positioned behind the first baseman.
2. A runner is hit behind the drawn in infielders.
3. If Myers had been hit by a ball that deflected off the pitcher.  

The rule states that a runner is out if hit by a batted ball before it passes an infielder and the umpire is convinced nobody else could make a play on it. This rule excludes the pitcher if he doesn't touch the ball, but if he does, the ball remains live.  Obviously, when it is a case of interference by the umpire, there has to be a neutral resolution.  Since you can't penalize the offense, the batter is awarded first base, but no other runners are allowed to advance, which is the best the rules can do for the defense. I saw this happen once in a high school game in a first and third situation where a hard grounder nailed the umpire on the foot, positioned to the right of the mound. Accordingly, the batter was awarded first base and the runner from third was sent back. This drew the ire and catcalls of both sets of fans/parents. The defensive team's boosters were ticked off because the ball was headed to the second baseman - for a possible double play or error maybe - and the offensive team's crew was mad because the runner was sent back  - possibly avoiding being thrown out at the plate. The rules provide a little something for everyone, but both sides saw the situation as a case where something was taken from them. You could say this approach took a set of brass ones - only in America, but that's another story for another day.

Let's all hope Mr. Myers is the guy with the brass ones!


Jim Tosches is an amateur umpire and blogger in Encinitas, Ca and author of the book, "The Rules Abide: The Thinking Fan's Guide to Baseball Rules (With History, Humor and a Few Big Words)"

CLICK HERE TO SEE REVIEWS AND PREVIEW BOOK