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Fielder's choice or what?

Posted: Sat Apr 14, 2018 9:23 pm
by WarrenBof
Here's what happened. Runners on first and second. Batter hits a grounder to the first baseman who could have put the batter out unassisted at first but throws instead to second trying for a double play. Unfortunately, the ball hits the runner going to second squarely in the back. Ball rolled into right, the runner originally on first got to third and the runner originally on second scored. Everybody is safe.

Don't know the official scorer's full ruling, but scoreboard showed E3. Also, number of hits by the batting team did not increase.

I recorded the batter safe on a fielder's choice because the first baseman could have made the out but chose to throw to second. Throwing error on first baseman allowed both runners to advance.

Naturally, everyone around me disagrees. What are the rules for this play?

Question 2: why does it seem that there are more questions about fielder's choice on this forum than any other subject?

Re: Fielder's choice or what?

Posted: Sat Apr 14, 2018 11:49 pm
by FTMSupport
Yes, Fielder's Choice for the batter is the right call, and Error for runner's advancing is the right call.

Probably lots of questions about FC because it actually does require the scorekeeper to make a judgment call in some situations (could the fielder have made the out on the batter).

Re: Fielder's choice or what?

Posted: Mon Apr 16, 2018 7:24 am
by PetroGuy
Also, scoreboards can be difficult to interpret. Was the E3 shown the scoring call on the batter or just that an E3 occured (which is what you have scored for the runner)?

Re: Fielder's choice or what?

Posted: Mon Apr 16, 2018 8:05 am
by WarrenBof
Well, I read the official scorer's pitch by pitch the next day. When that runner scored later in the inning, it was unearned. Haven't gone back to see how iScore handled it.

Re: Fielder's choice or what?

Posted: Mon Apr 16, 2018 8:30 am
by FTMSupport
If you have advanced scorekeeping on, when you enter a runner advancing by error it will ask would the runner have been out if not for the error and you would select YES. In that case, iScore would not treat it as an earned run. If you did not have advanced scorekeeping on and select this option, it is possible it will be treated as an earned run depending on everything else that took place in the inning.

Re: Fielder's choice or what?

Posted: Thu May 24, 2018 4:12 pm
by fremont
MLB 9.05(b)(1) It's a FC for the B-R anytime a preceding runner was out on a force or would have been not for an error.