TAMPA — Baseball’s most egregious home-plate collisions have been ruled illegal, thanks to a new agreement between Major League Baseball and the Players Association. But they haven’t been eliminated altogether for 2014, even as the sport’s powers proactively change the culture in the hopes of long-term eradication.
Rule 7.13, a new addition to baseball’s book of regulations, puts the onus on both the runner and the catcher (or another fielder blocking home plate). If the defensive player blocks the runner’s pathway without having possession of the ball, the runner will be called safe. And if the runner goes out of his direct pathway to the plate in order hit the catcher, the umpire will declare the runner out.
Therefore, collisions will still be permitted when the catcher has the ball and the runner doesn’t deviate from his path. The latter will be judged by whether the runner attempted to touch the plate and whether he lowered his shoulders or pushed through his hands, elbows or arms.
While the teams wanted to go further in banning collisions, the players didn’t want to bring on such extreme changes given that the exhibition schedule is about to start. Further adjustments could come in 2015. With that in mind, teams are immediately required to instruct — at all levels — their runners to slide and their catchers to clear a lane for the runner.
A committee of managers and players will be formed to discuss tougher legislation for 2015. Yankees manager Joe Girardi, Giants manager Bruce Bochy, Cardinals manager Mike Matheny and Braves manager Fredi Gonzalez — each of them former catchers — have been heavily involved in forming the new rule’s language.