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Project Insomnia

Project Insomnia is many things, but in this context it is simply a "braindump" of whatever I happen to be thinking/reading/watching/doing at the moment. Parental guidance suggested.

Tuesday, May 08, 2007

Rundown redux

Anyone watching Sunday night's Giants game against the Phillies should have had no doubt that Shane Victorino's collision with Omar Vizquel to gain an interference ruling was no mistake, and guess what? You were right:
Giants shortstop Omar Vizquel was correct in suspecting the Phillies' Shane Victorino purposely collided with him during a rundown Sunday night. The umpires called obstruction on Vizquel, citing a new rule allowing runners to 'establish their own baseline,' and Victorino slithered away safely.

'Running into him was my only escape,' he told Philadelphia reporters. 'Once I saw him release the ball, I said, 'I'm going right for him to try to get an interference call.' Fortunately, I got it.'

This is the first time I've heard of this "establish your own baseline" nonsense, and according to Rule 7.08 (a)(1):
Any runner is out when --
(a) (1) He runs more than three feet away from his baseline to avoid being tagged unless his action is to avoid interference with a fielder fielding a batted ball. A runner’s baseline is established when the tag attempt occurs and is a straight line from the runner to the base he is attempting to reach safely;
Victorino was trying to get to second in a rundown and ran more than three feet away from the line between first and second--onto the infield grass, in fact--to avoid being tagged. His action was not intended to avoid interference; indeed, according to his own statement, it was to deliberately induce a fielding interference call on Vizquel resulting in Victorino being awarded the base.

Dirty.
|| Andrew, 12:43 PM || ||

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