Rule 6.07 - Batting out of turn

First - thank you to our volunteer umpires that took to the field this week. I guarantee you that they handled all situations that arose as good or better than any of the paid umpires we have used in the past. An occurrence of batting out of turn came up in a AAA game yesterday and those in attendance made the best decision they could and all involved accepted the decision and the outcome and for that they are all to be commended. 

This is one of the most discussed and re-discussed rules in all of baseball, particularly youth baseball because the perception is that coaches can "game" the system to their benefit. This is true but most occurrences are honest mistakes and this is the foundation of the rules and the enforcement.

To understand the principle of rule 6.07 - batting out of turn - I find it best to skip to the end notes which state, "The umpire shall not direct the attention of any person to the presence in the batter’s box of an improper batter.  This rule is designed to require constant vigilance by the players and managers of both teams"

There are two fundamentals to keep in mind: When a player bats out of turn, the proper batter is the player called out.  If an improper batter bats and reaches base or is out and no appeal is made before a pitch to the next batter, or before any play or attempted play, that improper batter is considered to have batted in proper turn and establishes the order that is to follow.

The scenarios are way too numerous to cover. Suffice to say there are full blogs and websites dedicated to Batting out of turn or BOOT scenarios.

First, it is a call on which the umpire enforces only based on a defensive appeal. If no appeal is made before a pitch is thrown to the next batter or a play or an attempted play is made after the illegal batter was put out or became a runner, then the illegal batter is "legalized" and the order flows from there. 

Therefore, if an occurrence of BOOT is discovered by the defense after several batters have completed at-bats in proper sequence, they have missed their opportunity to appeal and the game continues.

Only one out can be called on a proper defensive appeal of BOOT. Defense can elect not to appeal and accept the outcome of BOOT such as a double-play.  However, if the outcome of a BOOT is a strike out, and if the defense appeals, the proper batter (batter who was skipped) is called out and the batter who just struck out returns to the plate to take the proper turn at-bat.

If a runner steals during a BOOT occurrence, the advance is legal. However, if the runners advance on a batted ball during a BOOT, they must return to the base occupied prior to the batted ball.

The offending team can only correct the situation by sending the correct batter up to take over for the at-bat for the batter who is batting out of turn, and he takes over without penalty with the count as it stands.

Examples from various sources...

Suppose the batting order is: Abel, Baker, Charles, Daniel, Edward, Frank, George, Hooker, Irwin.

Example: A proper batter fails to bat and is called out

Abel bats and is put out. Charles then bats out of turn. Charles makes a safe hit, reaching first base. Before any pitch is thrown to the next batter, a member of the defensive team asks the umpire to make a ruling. 

RULING: The proper batter after Abel was Baker, not Charles. Baker is called out for failing to bat in his turn, and Charles is removed from base and comes to bat again, because he is now the proper batter.

Example: An improper batter is legalized

Abel bats and is put out. Charles then bats out of turn. Charles makes a safe hit, reaching first base. Baker then comes to bat. A strike is pitched to Baker. A member of the defensive team then asks the umpire to make a ruling regarding the improper batting order. RULING: The first pitch to Baker made Charles's turn legal. The proper batter after Charles is Daniel, not Baker. Without penalty, Daniel comes to bat (replacing Baker) and assumes that one-strike count.

Example: An improper batter causes an out after a previous improper batter was legalized

Abel bats and is put out. Edward then bats out of turn. Edward reaches first base, and Charles then comes to bat and reaches base. The infraction is discovered by the defensive manager before a pitch is thrown to any subsequent batter, and it is reported to the umpire at that time. 

RULING: Edward did bat out of turn, but the first pitch to Charles legalized Edward's plate appearance. Therefore, the proper batter after Edward is Frank, so Charles is removed from the bases, Edward is returned to first base, Frank is called out for failing to bat in his proper turn, and George is now the proper batter.


If you have read this far...thank you. There is no chance you fully understand BOOT as a result of this post but I hope you get some of the basic most common scenarios that arise. If you have questions or other scenarios, post a comment and the discussion will continue.....I promise!