Umpire Dan Bellino Calls Pirates Batter Bryan Reynolds Out for Interference w Catcher Salvador Perez

When HP Umpire Dan Bellino ruled Pittsburgh’s Bryan Reynolds out for interference, he invoked Official Baseball Rule (a)(3), one of the few rules that explicitly makes it potentially illegal for a batter to leave the box. Article: With two out and the bases loaded, Reynolds attempting to check his swing on a two-strike slider from Royals pitcher Kyle Zimmer, the pitched ball bouncing in the dirt and away from catcher Perez, who retrieved the ball as Pirates baserunner R3 Kevin Newman attempted to score. OBR (a)(3) declares that “a batter is out for illegal action when they interfere with the catcher’s fielding or throwing by stepping out of the batter’s box or making any other movement that hinders the catcher’s play at home base.“ Remember, interference need not be an intentional act: Quite often, in fact, interference will be called due to a player’s unintentional action in impeding an opponent that, while inadverte