I love baseball, but I’ve never understood the rules for when you can and cannot run and steal bases.
I figure the rules have to be simple enough for the players to follow and react to instantly, but I just don’t get it.
One specific area of confusion for me is when you can safely leave the base you’re on to return to a previous base:
I remember making it to first base as a kid, the next batter got a hit that was caught, so I had to return to first base, but the outfielder tagged me with the ball on my way back to first, so I was told I was out. The exact same situation happened again a game later, so I stayed on second, and the outfielder took the ball to first and I was told I was out. It made no sense and I was so terrified of it happening a third time that I started waiting at first base to see the result of the play before I would run to second. That didn’t go over well either. I got fed up and stopped playing shortly after.
What gives?
In: Other
When a ball is caught in the air, runners have to be on the bag they were on at the start of the play. So, if you’re on first, and a ball is hit in the air and caught, you have to touch first base after the ball is caught. You can be out if you are tagged or if they throw the ball back to the base you started on. You were out both times because you did not touch the base you started on after the ball was caught either time.
After the ball is caught, you are free to run if you touch the base you started on after the catch. That’s called tagging up. When you see a runner on 3rd and a ball is hit in the air, he will wait on 3rd base until it is caught, and then take off for home.
>I was so terrified of it happening a third time that I started waiting at first base to see the result of the play before I would run to second.
Generally, this is *somewhat* the correct thing to do. On first base, you generally want to stop about halfway between 1st base and 2nd base and see what happens. If the ball is caught, you go back to first; if it’s dropped, you run to 2nd. On 2nd or 3rd, you generally go back to the base and wait for it to be caught. This is because runners typically don’t tag up from 1st, but more often do from 2nd or 3rd.
An exception to all of this is when there are 2 outs. When there are 2 outs, you run on contact no matter what, because if they catch it, the inning is over.
Stealing bases is fair game at pretty much anytime, unless someone calls time. Generally it’s done as the pitcher is delivering the pitch, but runners can go at other times. Defense not paying attention, never called time, and nobody is near the next base, you are free to try to take that base. But again, if you steal, and the batter hits it in the air, you gotta go back to the base you stole from.
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