Illegal Substitution

During a JV game the other day, the visiting team learned the penalty for illegal substitution the hard way. PH1 in for B9, pops up for an out. PH2 in for B1, hit by pitch. When PH2 gets to first, coach calls for time and then sends in B9 as a pinch runner. I'm scoring for the home team and give the assistant coach a heads up... Blue calls the illegal sub (B9) out. I was thinking this was like batting out of order - no pitch thrown, so just get the right sub in there. Now that I have refreshed myself on 3.1.1 I find that not only was B9 out, he was also supposed to be restricted to the dugout for the rest of the game. No one knew that part but B9 was their starting catcher. Pretty tough penalty for a coach that isn't paying attention.

One thing that it has taught me is that the players need to understand where they are in the batting order and who their sub/starter is. A quick "Hey coach, that's not my slot." could save an out and the eligibility of a key player.

Another interesting part of this episode is the way the players react. Our guys think it is so cool that I know the rules. Keep that in mind next winter and use it for motivation to sharpen your knowledge of the rules.