Expert: John Priest - 5/18/2010

Question
My son plays Dixie Youth Baseball. He was running home and the ball was caught by the catcher who was approximately 3-4 feet up 3rd baseline. My son jumped over the catcher and landed and took 2 steps and crossed home plate. The umpire called him safe. The coaches continue to argue about the call. Was he suppose to slide or avoid contact with the catcher?

Answer
Karen,
Yes you do have to slide to avoid contact, however if the catcher is in the baseline and as a runner you cannot run outside the baseline you cannot slide as you will not be able to reach the base.  Your son did the correct thing by avoiding the contact as best he could.  This is no different than a infielder tagging out a runner in the base paths, there may be a collision because the runner cannot slide in the middle of the base path.  Plays at home plate are a little more difficult because they usually involve a run scoring and are usually a judgement call.    

Hope this helps,
John Priest