Look, I’ve been busy, all right?
Yunel Escobar was called out in tonight’s Reds-Braves game after getting hit by a thrown ball while running to first base in fair territory. It was the right call. However, lots of times, the umpires don’t make the right call there. (It only seems like it only happens to the Braves, I’m sure.) But I think I figured out why it doesn’t happen all the time, and it’s not because the umpires are incompetent.
Here’s the thing. If the umpires make that call all the time, then the pitchers, catchers, and first basemen who make the plays will have a fun time. They won’t have to try to throw to first base and miss the runner, and they’ll just nail the runner in the back. That’s probably something you want to avoid. So the umpires only call it sometimes. I’m not saying that’s the best way to go necessarily, but I’m guessing that’s why.
Bobby Cox was ejected for arguing (again, the right call). It’s his career 150th ejection.
Awful Umpiring 
High School softball uses a double bag to avoid these situations. One is in fair territory, the other in foul, but its attached.
Kids were told to basically peg the runner in the back because they would automatically be out so they put these into play and it made it a lot safer.
It also happened to the Red Sox in the 1986 World Series. Runner was in fair territory and should have been called for interference, but the umpires thought he was in foul territory and the Mets won the game. And then the Series.