Atlanta Braves post-season history: why Sam Holbrook is a villain
By the Book
For playoff games, MLB assigns 6 umpires. 2 extras are installed along the left-/right-field lines for sake of boundary calls and interference checks. As replay review has become the norm, one could argue that these extra umps are superfluous, but that’s not the stance taken by MLB.
As a result of this, umpires stationed ‘out there’ have a different perspective of the field from what they’re used to seeing. Most of the action is now in front of them as opposed to working the infield where things are often happening behind them.
Whether this factor was at work on that night in the mind of Left Field guard Sam Holbrook is unknown. What is known is that a rule intended to remove a game exploit was stretched in meaning well beyond the breaking point.
At this point, let’s remind ourselves what that rule states and why it came into being.
In the Official MLB Rule Book, this topic comes under the Definitions of Terms section, beginning on page 145.
It’s lengthy, but here’s the relevant parts (emphasis noted):
"An INFIELD FLY is a fair fly ball (not including a line drive nor an attempted bunt) which can be caught by an infielder with ordinary effort, when first and second, or first, second and third bases are occupied, before two are out. The pitcher, catcher and any outfielder who stations himself in the infield on the play shall be considered infielders for the purpose of this rule."
The next paragraph includes a disclaimer for the ambiguity of a fly ball near the foul line. The one after that talks about the ball being ‘live’ with runners being allowed to advance at their own risk.
It is instructive, though, to consider the reason that this rule is in the book in the first place.
The intent and purpose was to foil infielders’ savvy attempts to exploit the plight of runners in this situation.
With an infield pop-up and multiple runners aboard, an infielder could allow the ball to drop in front of them, then – since the runners are forced to freeze in position – grab the ball and get a cheap double play by nailing the lead runners.
The situation still exists since balls judged to be line drives (even ‘soft’ liners) can still achieve the same effect without invoking the Infield Fly Rule. But this – combined with an ‘intentional drop’ rule (5.09a(12), page 42) has mitigated the practice quite a bit.
Unfortunately, the manner in which this rule was penned introduced some (probably) unintended consequences… and it’s those consequences that bit the Braves that night.