Can someone explain to me what constitutes blocking the plate anymore?


Can someone explain to me what constitutes blocking the plate anymore?

24 comments
  1. Easiest way to explain it is.

    You can not catch the ball while you are in the runner’s base path.

    However, you can catch the ball outside of the base path (in front of the plate) and then come into the path to tag the runner.

  2. It’s a stupid rule arbitrarily enforced by umpires who have a very hard time calling regular balls and strikes.

  3. Can someone also explain why it’s ok to block the bases but not home plate?? I’ve seen several stealing attempts where they put the knee down to block a clear path to the base.

  4. Ah, the age-old art of plate blocking: Catch the ball, channel your inner dance moves, and tag that runner! 💃⚾️

  5. The catcher can practically sit on home plate as long as he has full possession of the ball before the runner gets to the plate. As a catcher you need to make the plate and base path available for a runner to touch the plate or run if you do not have possession of the baseball. If a catcher is standing on the corner or side of home plate (leaving the runner enough plate surface area to step or slide), catches the ball, then tags it’s totally legal. However if the catcher stands on the plate leaving the runner with no availability to the plate without the ball (blocking) it’s illegal. If a slide could have been initiated to avoid contact with catcher and there is a collision that is illegal on the runner. From the appearance of the two pictures both look to be legal, the top may have been a mistake call.

  6. It has to do with where the catcher was before he get the ball. If he was in the base path prior to catch to ball, then that constitutes blocking the plate. If he needed to be on the base path to catch the ball, then it could be fine, umpire discretion.

    “The catcher is not permitted to block the runner’s path to the plate unless he is in possession of the ball, though blocking the path of the runner in a legitimate attempt to receive a throw is not considered a violation.”

  7. Pete rose wouldn’t give a crap, he’d take their heads off either way

  8. Well in this picture, the catcher on top has a foot on the plate and doesn’t have the ball yet. The catcher at the bottom does not have a foot on the plate, but he also already has the ball. Seems pretty clear from the screenshots that the correct call was made.

  9. Don’t complain about umpiring and rule calls until you learn the rules. Both of these images demonstrate textbook receiving and blocking examples.

  10. The way I understand it is this:

    —If the catcher is in possession of the ball, then the catcher can permissibly block the plate after gaining possession.

    —Normally, if the catcher is not in possession of the ball, then the catcher cannot block the plate, however…

    —If the catcher is waiting on a throw, and needs to come into the runner’s path in order to field the throw, that is permissible.

  11. I don’t know the top picture, but the bottom picture happened last night in the Guardians Rangers game.

    The catcher caught the ball in fair territory a good 10 steps before Jankowski was even near home plate. The catcher then moved in front of the plate to make the tag, as this is permitted.

    Jankowski even got up and shrugged at Bochy as if to say “we might as well challenge it” even though he was out by a mile.

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