four out play?

[centexorange]

Or a run scored. A bit confusing but follow along.
The Link

 

[Sgt. Longhorn]

Yeah, its a great way to cause a brawl at a softball tournament.

Every body should have an umpire on their team. Umpires seem to be the only ones who actually know the rules.

In my one awful experience with this rule I had the plate and runners were on 1st and 3rd with 1 out. Batter hits a deep fly ball to right center that looks like it's going to be over everybody's head. Runner on third leaves the bag by about 3 steps and then decided the guy might catch it. Runner at 1st does the same thing.

Sure enough the right center fielder runs it down at the fence and makes a great catch. Runner at 1st steps back and tags up. Runner at 3rd just runs. He forgot to go back and tag.

As the plate umpire in a two man mechanic, I had the fly out and the runner at 3rd. Being the good, hustling umpire that I am

I was in position in foul territory between 3rd and home so I could see the guy catch the ball and then check my runner and be there for any play at either 3rd or home.

The runner on 1st tags up, but the outfielder makes a great throw and he is tagged out at 2nd for the 3rd out. In the mean time the runner from 3rd had scored.

The guy playing 3rd base for the fielding team was an umpire. He stopped everybody from leaving the field and they legally appealed the runner not tagging at 3rd base. I ruled him out and removed the run from the board per the '4 out rule'.

I was really wondering if I was going to make it off the field alive. They protested to the tournament director, but it's the right call.

They lost by 5 so it didn't really make a difference, but it sure does make folks mad.

 

[Oilfield]

Very cool. Never encountered that but it kind of makes sense.

 

[spystud13]

Damn Sgt, I've played 1000s of softball games in DFW & I can count on one hand how many umps would have got that call right (let alone even bothered to check if the runner on 3rd tagged)!

Also, that whole MLB play would have been negated if Lopez simply stepped on 2nd instead of tagging the runner.

 

[Sgt. Longhorn]

spystud, that's funny because my partner looked at me like I was crazy when I made the call. Once I explained it to him between innings he understood.

He knew the rule, he just couldn't quite work out the situation.

If the other team's third baseman hadn't also been an umpire I'm 99% sure the appeal wouldn't have happened and the run would have counted.