Batted Ball Fair or Foul March 21 2015, 0 Comments

Hey Ump, I have another question. If the batter hits the ball down the first baseline & the 1st baseman fields the ball in front of the bag with one foot in fair & the foot in foul territory,is the ball fair or foul?

Answer:

I really can't answer your question because the player has nothing to do with whether the ball is fair or foul.  In the baseball what determines if a ball is fair or foul is where it's located when touched by a player. If the ball is on or over line when touched then the ball is fair regardless of where the player is. It is quite conceivable to have a player in fair territory when he touches the ball, but the ball is located outside of the line, therefore it is foul. To expand on this little bit a ball that is it and touches the ground in front of first or third base  then passes over or inside of the base is fair regardless of where it touches after it passes the base. If the ball is in flight when it goes past first or third in what determines it to be fair or foul is where it lands or is first touched by a player.  Therefore the reason I couldn't answer your question directly is you didn't tell me where the ball was when touch, and the player position has nothing to do with determining fair or foul.