Sliding at Home Plate

Have the rules about sliding into home plate changed? DD just got ejected from a middle school game for not sliding at home. No play being made, catcher standing on plate. DD bumps into the catcher and knocks her down. It was not a collision, but some contact. Umpire ejects DD for not sliding. I thought if no play is being made then the catcher has to move. To me this is no different then colliding with the first baseman when rounding 1st on a hit to the outfield. The batter runner is not ejected, they call obstruction on the fielder.

 

I believe in middle school you have to avoid a collision at the plate. That might mean you have to slide. In any event if you knock the catcher down most times you will be ejected.

In HS they give you a warning unless it is deemed malicious. If it is deemed malicious you are ejected.

It's a good rule in my opinion.

 

It is my understanding that the middle schools in our county play by high school rules. There was no malicious attempt to run into the catcher or break up the play. The contact actually occurred after the runner had crossed the plate. The catcher was going after a wildly thrown ball and not standing on the plate as stated in my earlier post. I agree that you should slide or try to avoid contact, but an ejection in this situation just seems uncalled for.

 

That sounds more like incidental (accidental?) contact. In that case I wouldn't think there should be an ejection; not even a warning. Especially if the catcher wasn't on or at the plate.

 

No major rules code has a "must-slide" rule. All major rules codes have a "must avoid collision" rules. Some local organizations may have an unwritten must-slide rule. However, I stress that it is almost always unwritten since improper slides can create injuries, and injuries bring lawyers, and lawyers bring lawsuits against those who mandate an inherently dangerous practice.

Some umpires may believe that there is a "must-slide" rule where none exists. Some fans may believe that there is a "must-slide" rule where none exists. A slide is only one way of avoiding a collision. There are others.

Absent written local rules to the contrary, I would probably not eject the runner given what you have described. However, since I didn't see the event, I don't know.

In any case, the run would still score, even with the ejection.

 

I coach middle school ball. If a catcher is hit in the baseline without the ball, or on the plate, she is in the wrong. Middle school follows high school rules in our conference, and I guess every conference.