Oregon and Utah Valley had a wild ending marked by a controversial play at the plate that led to an ejection. With runners on in the bottom of the eighth, an outfielder made a clean catch, then a throw home sailed past the catcher. The pitcher backed it up and fielded the ball on a bounce. The runner, crashing home, made contact with the catcher without getting into a proper slide. The ump called him safe at first, but after discussion and review, the call changed to an out. The runner was also ejected for malicious contact, meaning he’ll miss the next game.
The review ruled there was no obstruction by the catcher, but the collision violated college baseball’s rule 8.7, which overrides obstruction if the runner doesn’t attempt a legal slide. In this case, the runner didn’t get his butt or legs on the ground before contact. That’s the standard required by the rulebook. The clip compared several MLB plays and found that most runners start their slides much earlier than this Oregon player did. Based on those comparisons, the runner was late and made no real effort to avoid contact, making the call against him consistent with the rule.
While some fans were angry about the call, the explanation from NCAA rules is clear. Coaches need to emphasize proper sliding techniques that comply with current safety rules, especially with how strictly they’re enforced in the college game. The play looked like a bang-bang collision, but the rulebook left no real room for interpretation.