Rules

Live-Ball Balk Rules

by Bob Nasser, NVBUA Rules Interpreter

In standard NFHS games, we know that the moment a pitcher balks, the ball becomes dead. Nothing that happens after the balk is considered and each runner is then awarded one base. However, when we venture outside of the standard NFHS ruleset, we will encounter what is sometimes referred to as “live-ball balks”.

What does that mean? That means that the pitcher can throw a pitch after the balk, the batter can hit it and if all runners, including the batter runner advance one base, the balk would be ignored. Some of our private school leagues, as well as our adult leagues, use that balk rule that allows play to continue after a balk occurs

A player who violates the courtesy runner rule is considered to be an ineligible substitute (page 68, #7). We know from rule 3-1-1 that when an illegal substitute on offense is discovered, the substitute is out and restricted to the dugout. So do we have an out and is Smith restricted to the dugout here? The answer is… it depends.

Live-ball balk rules contain numerous “if-then-else” situations, and they can be a challenge when you first have to officiate a game with that rule being used. I developed (or perhaps borrowed) the following mnemonic to calm me down and sort through using the live-ball balk rule. Before we dig in, it is important to know… coaches are not given an option of accepting or declining the balk penalty, nor can coaches choose which of the various live-ball balk penalties should be applied.

When a play concludes after a balk, I rely on the old mnemonic we learned to remember our vowels — “a, e, i, o, u, and sometimes y”. We either (a)cknowledge the balk, (e)nforce the balk, or (i)gnore the balk altogether. By “we”, I mean the umpires since the coach has no choice of what path we are required to take. The path we follow (a, e, or i) is completely dependent on the post- balk actions of the batter and all runners.

(a)cknowledge: If all the runners advanced, at least 1 base, during the post- balk playing action, but the batter does not, then acknowledge the balk by nullifying the pitch and restoring the batter’s count to what it was prior to that pitch.

(e)nforce: If the batter and all runners do not advance at least one base during the post- balk playing action, then enforce the balk by advancing each runner one base from the time of the pitch and reset the batter’s count (if the balk occurred on a pitch).

(i)gnore: If the batter and all runners advanced at least one base during the post- balk playing action, then ignore the balk and allow the play to stand.

Here are a few examples:

1. With R1 stealing and a 1-1 count, the pitcher balks as he delivers a strike to the batter. R1 successfully stole second base, but the batter did not advance. In this case, we would (a)cknowledge the balk by leaving R1 at second base and resetting the batter’s count to 1-1.
2. If example 1 above included R3, but R3 was not stealing (the classic first and third play), then we would (e)nforce the balk by awarding R3 home, leaving R1 at second base, and then resetting the batter’s count to 1-1.
3. If example 1 instead resulted in the batter safely singling to left field, but R1 advanced to 2nd and then was thrown out while trying to advance to third base, then the balk is (i)gnored. The runner and batter each advanced one base on the post- balk playing action, therefore the balk is (i)gnored.

There are countless scenarios—some more straightforward than others—that can arise from post-balk action. These include: when the batter is hit by the pitch, when the batter receives ball-4, a dropped third strike, batter interference, catcher obstruction, runner interference, umpire interference, force-play-slide rule, a partially completed double play attempt, etc., etc. Let’s hold off on reviewing these “stump the ump” scenarios until our next meeting at our local watering hole.

In the meantime, remember that every live-ball balk ultimately leads you to one of three outcomes: acknowledge, enforce, or ignore. Work through the “a, e, i” checklist, and even the most unusual live-ball balk situations become manageable.