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The infield fly rule is a rule of baseball and softball that treats certain fly balls as though caught, before the ball is caught, even if the infielder fails to catch it or drops it on purpose. The umpire 's declaration of an infield fly means that the batter is out (and all force plays are removed) regardless of whether the ball is caught.
The Infield Fly Rule (now covered by Major League Baseball rules 6.05e and 2.00), was adopted in the 1890s to prevent situations in which fielders could take advantage of base runners by intentionally allowing a ball to drop with runners on first and second or bases loaded and less than two outs in order to turn a double play or triple play on the base runners.
If a batted ball declared to be an infield fly is left untouched and it comes to rest (or is first touched) in foul territory before passing first base or third base, it is treated the same as any other foul ball (that is, the batter is not automatically out). [1]: 149–150 The infield fly rule was adopted in 1895. [3]
"[An infield fly] is alive and runners may advance at the risk of the ball being caught, or retouch and advance after the ball is touched, the same as on any fly ball. If the hit becomes a foul ...
The infield, containing the four bases, is for general defensive purposes bounded by the foul lines and within the grass line (see figure). The outfield is the grassed area beyond the infield grass line between the foul lines and bounded by a wall or fence. Foul territory is the entire area outside the foul lines.
"The Common Law Origins of the Infield Fly Rule" is the title of an article by William S. Stevens published in 1975 in the University of Pennsylvania Law Review analyzing the infield fly rule. [1] The brief eight-page article has vastly surpassed its modest original context, having been cited in federal and state judicial opinions and more than ...
This rule continues in baseball today, but catcher became a required position, and starting in the mid-19th century, catchers began moving up to their current position directly behind home plate so as to catch pitches (now following a flatter trajectory) directly on the fly. Thus the rule became mostly vestigial and its original children's-game ...
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