Blocking bases has long been a part of play for defensive players on the baseball field.  A few years ago, Major League Baseball passed a new rule about catchers blocking home plate after a horrendous accident resulting in San Francisco Giants catcher Buster Posey suffering a broken leg.

MLB’s latest efforts to target players who block bases is to issue new guidelines for the umpires on the rules.

The rule states that if a player blocks the plate and does not have the ball, the base is awarded to the runner.  Currently, the final decision on the ruling belongs to the umpire and is not a reviewable play.

MLB has asked the umpires to “call obstruction if they determine a fielder has positioned himself to impede or hinder a runner’s path to the base before receiving the ball.”

MLB is making the suggestion after an increased use of plate blocking by placing a leg or knee in front of the base preventing the runner from reaching the base.  The plate blocking is viewed as increased aggressiveness on the basepaths.

Andrew McCutchen of the Pittsburgh Pirates noted, “it’s inevitable that someone is going to get hurt.  The only thing we can do is slide cleats-first and possibly injure [the fielder] or injure both of us. … Why not do something now to protect the players and also maintain the integrity of the game? To me, it makes perfect sense to say, ‘You can’t block the base.’ That’s it. If the throw takes you there, OK, I get it. But you can’t intentionally camp out in the lane.”

In days gone by, if a fielder blocked a base; the runner would slide into the fielder striking him with their spikes.  But that practice has faded in the modern era; which prompts the fielder to block the base.

The rule only applies to players who do not already possess the ball or are in the process of catching the ball.  Previously, it was believed that a ball heading in the direction of the player was “preparing to catch the ball”; but under the new guidelines, it must be clear that the player is actually in the process of catching the ball; otherwise, it is intentional blocking of the base and against the rules.

One of the most common occurrences of the violation is when a runner is attempting to steal a base and the fielder blocks the base with his leg, preventing the runner from reaching the base.