>>Touching base - I noticed that if a runner doesn't touch base before the base guard fielder catches the ball then he's out. However I've seen times when the fielder HAS caught the ball before but the runner's managed to slide in before being tagged. Now I think on those occasions the ball had touched earth before being caught.
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>There are actually quite a few ways to make an out. If a fielder catches the ball on the fly (before it bounces), the batter is out. End of story. The batter's position on the field doesn't matter.

That's one of the things I love about the game. The fielder's position doesn't matter either. Foul territory is a fine place to catch the ball. The fielder just has to make sure he knows where the runners are when he catches that foul. He also has to make sure his feet are in foul territory (just in case he gets a case of butterfingers).

In fact, the only reason a home run is a home run often is just that there is a fence stopping the fielder from getting to the ball. Afaik, there is nothing about the outfield fence, and the ball hit over it that magically creates a home run. If the fielder could get to it before it hits dirt, it would be an out.

Man, what a beautiful game!

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>However, if the ball touches the ground, the fielders can still make an out by getting the ball to the base before the runner. If the runner can backtrack, then the fielder has to tag the runner with the ball (or with the glove that's holding the ball) when he's not on the base.
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>But if the runner has nowhere else to go, then the fielder just has to touch the base while holding the ball. That's a force out.
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>Tamar