Forced run

Heisenberg · 05-13-2017, 08:56 AM

I've read that in baseball there is something like a forced run - when a person who is on the base has to advance like guy on 2nd base must run because the guy on the 1st base has to run because batter has to run to the 1st base. What happens in my games is that those guys, especially the guy on the 1st base move forward a bit and don't run to the 2nd base, and the batter is out because fielder catches the ball before he gets to the 2nd base. My question is: does the forced run include just getting off the base and standing next to it or does the player have to really run and attempt to get a base?

And also another one - I get it that when an outfielder catches the ball before it falls to the ground and my batter is not on the base, he's out, but infielders seem complicated. Sometimes they have to pass the ball to the guy on the base and sometimes they can just catch it to get the runner out. Is it because of bunting when the ball hits the ground and so they cannot get him out just by catching it?

EDIT - got another one. When a ball is flying pretty far quite often my players are both running. In recent game 1st base got to 3rd and the batter didn't make it in time and got out just before 2nd base. What if he stayed on that 1st base? Would it mean that he would not be out and the other player could stay in the game and get to 3rd base?

Sorry that I have so many questions but although I've fallen in live this game, I'm still new to it.

tklem321 · 05-13-2017, 11:07 PM

I'll take a shot at this. What the runners must do is determined by whether the ball is hit in the air (a "fly") or it hits the ground (a "grounder").

On a grounder, everyone must run unless the base behind him is empty. For example, If the runner on 1st can't make it to 2nd before the ball is thrown there, he is out. The only exception is if the base behind the runner is empty. For example, if the runner is on 2nd and 1st base is empty, the runner can stay on 2nd. The best way to think of it is that on a grounder, there can't be two players on the same base.

On a fly ball that is caught before it hits the ground, the runners don't have to advance to the next base. That's why they wait beside the bag to see what happens. If the ball is caught, they can run to the next base but they must first go back and touch the base they were on before advancing.

There's also a special rule for fly balls that are hit in the infield (the "infield fly rule") but it takes a bit of explaining and it won't come up in OOTP. You can Google it if you're curious.

As for your last question, yes, the batter could have stayed on 1st and been safe and the runner could have stayed on 3rd. The batter was trying to "stretch" his single into a double and got caught. He wasn't fast enough or he underestimated the thrower's arm.

OldFatGuy · 05-14-2017, 04:56 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Heisenberg

I've read that in baseball there is something like a forced run - when a person who is on the base has to advance like guy on 2nd base must run because the guy on the 1st base has to run because batter has to run to the 1st base. What happens in my games is that those guys, especially the guy on the 1st base move forward a bit and don't run to the 2nd base, and the batter is out because fielder catches the ball before he gets to the 2nd base. My question is: does the forced run include just getting off the base and standing next to it or does the player have to really run and attempt to get a base?

And also another one - I get it that when an outfielder catches the ball before it falls to the ground and my batter is not on the base, he's out, but infielders seem complicated. Sometimes they have to pass the ball to the guy on the base and sometimes they can just catch it to get the runner out. Is it because of bunting when the ball hits the ground and so they cannot get him out just by catching it?

EDIT - got another one. When a ball is flying pretty far quite often my players are both running. In recent game 1st base got to 3rd and the batter didn't make it in time and got out just before 2nd base. What if he stayed on that 1st base? Would it mean that he would not be out and the other player could stay in the game and get to 3rd base?

Sorry that I have so many questions but although I've fallen in live this game, I'm still new to it.

A runner is "forced" to run only when there is a man on first, or first and second, or the bases are loaded, where the ball is hit on the ground. If the ball is hit in the air, they must wait to see if it is caught. If it is caught, the batter is out and they are not forced ahead and return to their base. If it is not caught and hits the ground, they are "forced" ahead by the fact that the hitter must go to first so each runner "ahead" of his is forced ahead. So, if the ball is hit on the ground, then the "forced" runners should run right away. If it is hit in the air (and it's less than two outs), then they should just move a few feet off the bag so they can get back to the base if it is caught or move forward to the next base if it is not.

If it is caught and they don't get back to the base before the ball gets to the base, they are out too (a double play... the batter is out when the ball in the air is caught and the runner is "doubled off" base if he doesn't get back to the base before the ball is thrown back in to that base.

If the ball is NOT caught, then they are out if they don't get to the next base before the ball reaches there. This is called a "force out." And is common with ground balls. But this is why when a ball is hit in the air a good base runner will get as far toward the next base as he can with still enough room to make it back to his original base if it is caught.

As for the second part, the rules are the same in the infield and outfield. If a ball is caught before it hits the ground, the batter is out. If it hits the ground, the only way to get the batter out is to beat him to first base with the throw. Or, if there are "forced" runners, you can get one of the runners out by beating the with the throw to that base. So if a man is on first and the batter hits a ground ball to the 3rd baseman, the 3rd baseman can throw it second and if he gets it there before the runner on first gets there the runner is out and the batters in on first. OR, the 3rd baseman could throw the ball to first and if the throw beats the batter to first the batter is out, and the runner on first reaches second. OR he could throw to second, get the runner at first out going to second AND then the 2nd baseman could throw it to first and if THAT throw also beats the batter to first then BOTH runners are out and it's a double play.

But if the ball is hit in the air to the infield, it's just like the outfield where if it is caught in the air, the batter is out, and the baserunners stay at their bases.

Sorry for the length.

NoOne · 05-15-2017, 04:46 PM

if both are standing on the base, you can only tag the guy that should have run to 2nd.

if the guy runnign to 1st isn't there yet, you can tag the guy who should have run, then step on the base to get 2 outs.

if, in that previous situation, you step on the base first, the guy that should have run to 2nd is safe at first the exact moment you touch the base -- only 1 out... order of events matters! not something we control, i doubt the game would screwn this up. ML players wouldn't make this mistake after playing baeball since 3-4years old, i hope.

Simply google MLB official rules -- good overview of things is readily available... and double check anythign you read in the foroms with a more suitable reference source.

05-13-2017, 08:56 AM	#1
Heisenberg Minors (Rookie Ball) Join Date: May 2017 Posts: 25	Forced run I've read that in baseball there is something like a forced run - when a person who is on the base has to advance like guy on 2nd base must run because the guy on the 1st base has to run because batter has to run to the 1st base. What happens in my games is that those guys, especially the guy on the 1st base move forward a bit and don't run to the 2nd base, and the batter is out because fielder catches the ball before he gets to the 2nd base. My question is: does the forced run include just getting off the base and standing next to it or does the player have to really run and attempt to get a base? And also another one - I get it that when an outfielder catches the ball before it falls to the ground and my batter is not on the base, he's out, but infielders seem complicated. Sometimes they have to pass the ball to the guy on the base and sometimes they can just catch it to get the runner out. Is it because of bunting when the ball hits the ground and so they cannot get him out just by catching it? EDIT - got another one. When a ball is flying pretty far quite often my players are both running. In recent game 1st base got to 3rd and the batter didn't make it in time and got out just before 2nd base. What if he stayed on that 1st base? Would it mean that he would not be out and the other player could stay in the game and get to 3rd base? Sorry that I have so many questions but although I've fallen in live this game, I'm still new to it. Last edited by Heisenberg; 05-13-2017 at 09:42 AM.

05-13-2017, 11:07 PM	#2
tklem321 Minors (Triple A) Join Date: Apr 2017 Posts: 246	I'll take a shot at this. What the runners must do is determined by whether the ball is hit in the air (a "fly") or it hits the ground (a "grounder"). On a grounder, everyone must run unless the base behind him is empty. For example, If the runner on 1st can't make it to 2nd before the ball is thrown there, he is out. The only exception is if the base behind the runner is empty. For example, if the runner is on 2nd and 1st base is empty, the runner can stay on 2nd. The best way to think of it is that on a grounder, there can't be two players on the same base. On a fly ball that is caught before it hits the ground, the runners don't have to advance to the next base. That's why they wait beside the bag to see what happens. If the ball is caught, they can run to the next base but they must first go back and touch the base they were on before advancing. There's also a special rule for fly balls that are hit in the infield (the "infield fly rule") but it takes a bit of explaining and it won't come up in OOTP. You can Google it if you're curious. As for your last question, yes, the batter could have stayed on 1st and been safe and the runner could have stayed on 3rd. The batter was trying to "stretch" his single into a double and got caught. He wasn't fast enough or he underestimated the thrower's arm. Last edited by tklem321; 05-13-2017 at 11:12 PM. Reason: clarity

05-15-2017, 04:46 PM	#4
NoOne Banned Join Date: Apr 2015 Posts: 7,273 Infractions: 0/2 (4)	if both are standing on the base, you can only tag the guy that should have run to 2nd. if the guy runnign to 1st isn't there yet, you can tag the guy who should have run, then step on the base to get 2 outs. if, in that previous situation, you step on the base first, the guy that should have run to 2nd is safe at first the exact moment you touch the base -- only 1 out... order of events matters! not something we control, i doubt the game would screwn this up. ML players wouldn't make this mistake after playing baeball since 3-4years old, i hope. Simply google MLB official rules -- good overview of things is readily available... and double check anythign you read in the foroms with a more suitable reference source. Last edited by NoOne; 05-15-2017 at 04:47 PM.