Cubs-White Sox obstruction

If it pissed off Hawk, it is, by definition, the correct call.

 

Harrelson and Jackson just said that the rulebook said Rapuano should have called a dead ball at the time of the obstruction.

That makes no sense to me, because if that's the case, then you can tackle someone on second to stop someone on third from coming around to score.

That rule needs to be changed.

 

Obstruction is an automatic dead ball, but runners can be awarded whatever base the umpire thinks they would have gotten safely were it not for the obstruction.

If you tackled a runner, it would be a dead ball, but the umpire can just send the runner as far as he thinks he would have gotten on his own.

EDIT:

From the rule bueller posted:

If a play is being made on the obstructed runner, or if the batterrunner is obstructed before he touches first base, the ball is dead and all runners shall advance, without liability to be put out, to the bases they would have reached, in the umpire’s judgment, if there had been no obstruction. The obstructed runner shall be awarded at least one base beyond the base he had last legally touched before the obstruction. Any preceding runners, forced to advance by the award of bases as the penalty for obstruction, shall advance without liability to be put out.

 

That's fine, but it would be much cleaner to just let it play out.

 

No, if you don't have a dead ball situation, you open a whole 'nother can of worms...

 

Here's the GameDay synopsis for that inning:
Felix Pie walks.
Angel Pagan singles ... Pie to second. None out.
DeRosa singles.

My description from here:
Pie went to tag up on DeRosa's ball. Pagan went halfway. When the ball landed, Pagan held up rather than run over Pie, who ran toward third.

Uribe obstructs Pagan as he got to second.

Third base coach Mike Quade held Pie at third. Pagan was halfway to third and had to retreat.

The throw comes in from the outfield and the Sox cut it off, relay to second and apply the tag to Pagan.

DeRosa had rounded first too far thinking Pie was scoring and Pagan was going to third. He gets in a rundown.

Pie takes off for home and the Sox give up on DeRosa to go after Pie. Pie gets in a rundown and is tagged out.

Umpires huddle, decide everyone is safe and kick out Ozzie Guillen.

I wonder how much of the 10-minute huddle between the umps was deciding who would kick Ozzie out. That's a situation where a manager has to get kicked out.

 

But Guillen was totally calm the whole time. He must have been kicked out just for refusing to go back to the dugout. Or it was the most calmly stated "F you" I've ever seen.

 

It's not automatically a dead ball. Rapuano didn't signal "time" because no play was being made on Pagan. See part (b) of good 'ol 7.06.

(b) If no play is being made on the obstructed runner, the play shall proceed until no further action is possible. The umpire shall then call “Time” and impose such penalties, if any, as in his judgment will nullify the act of obstruction.

 

I know my way around the rule book a little bit. In Rule 2, definition of terms, under obstruction. Uribe wasn't fielding his position at the time of contact.

Rule 2.00 (Obstruction) Comment: If a fielder is about to receive a thrown ball and if the ball is in flight directly toward and near enough to the fielder so he must occupy his position to receive the ball he may be considered “in the act of fielding a ball.” It is entirely up to the judgment of the umpire as to whether a fielder is in the act of fielding a ball. After a fielder has made an attempt to field a ball and missed, he can no longer be in the “act of fielding” the ball. For example: If an infielder dives at a ground ball and the ball passes him and he continues to lie on the ground and delays the progress of the runner, he very likely has obstructed the runner.

 

It looked like Ozzie flipped something back toward the dugout before he went out... possibly the lineup card? He didn't plan on being around at the end of the game. Ultimately, though, it's just a wacky sidenote. All of it matters not when you manage 2 runs in 27 innings.

 

Underrated part of the inning ... The next batter had a sac fly to center. Pie can fly, so he was going to score no matter what, and Pagan gets thrown out going to third. It's like Pagan just wanted to show everyone he was not going to score that inning no matter what.

Way to take advantage of a break, Angel!

 

According to the AP gamer, Ozzie told Joe West to eject him, apparently very politely.