Scenario: With a runner on third and one out, the batter hits a pop-up behind the second baseman. The fielder tracks back and makes an easy catch and the hitter slams his bat, thick end first, into the paint of the first-base line. Even though the catch represented the second out of the inning, the gloveman thinks that it was the last out and rolls the ball slowly towards the pitcher’s mound. The alert base-runner at third uses the opportunity to come home.
As the official scorer, do you charge the second baseman with an error for allowing the runner to advance to home?
A – Yes.
B – No.
Highlight the text below to reveal the answer:
Answer: A – Yes.
Rule 10.12(a)(1) Comment states:
The official scorer shall not score mental mistakes or misjudgments as errors unless a specific rule prescribes otherwise. A fielder’s mental mistake that leads to a physical misplay—such as throwing the ball into the stands or rolling the ball to the pitcher’s mound, mistakenly believing there to be three outs, and thereby allowing a runner or runners to advance—shall not be considered a mental mistake for purposes of this rule and the official scorer shall charge a fielder committing such a mistake with an error.
