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Inbaseball, therules state that a batted ball is consideredin flight when it has not yet touched any object other than a fielder or his equipment. Such a ball can be caught by a fielder to put the batterout.
Once a batted ball touches the ground, a fence or wall, a foul pole, abase, thepitcher's rubber, anumpire, or abaserunner, it is no longerin flight. A batted ball that passes entirely out of the playing field ceases to bein flight when that occurs; if it was between thefoul poles at that moment, then it is ahome run which entitles the batter (and any other runners on base) to score.
A special rule exists in covered baseball facilities (retractable or fixed roofed), where a batted ball striking the roof, roof supporting structure, or objects suspended from the roof (e.g., speakers) while in fair territory is still considered to be in flight. Rules for batted balls striking any of those objects in foul territory differ between ballparks, with most considering such a ball to still be in flight, and some considering it to be afoul ball anddead from the time it strikes.
If a batted ball (other than afoul tip, with less than 2 strikes) iscaught in flight, the batter isout—called afly out—and all runners musttag up, meaning that they are out if a fielder with possession of the ball touches their starting base (time-of-pitch base) before they do. A batted ball cannot be ruledfoul orfair while in flight; a batted ball that is past first or third base will be called foul or fair based on where it ceases to be in flight, or where it is first touched by a fielder, whichever occurs first. A fly out on a ball in foul territory is also called afoul out.[1] Afoul tip, which by definition is always caught in flight, is a strike by special rule, and not an out, unless caught as a 3rd strike.
If a batted ball passes out of the playing field in flight and is fair, it is an automatichome run, entitling thebatter and all runners to score without liability to be put out. However, if the fence or other barrier is less than 250 feet from home plate, a ball hit past that fence in flight and fair shall be ruled an automatic double. In theUnited States, such short fences are very rare even in the lowest-level amateur ballfields. Fields with short fences can be commonplace in some countries where baseball is less popular; often, soccer fields have to be used, resulting in a very short left or right field.
The shortest fair fences inMajor League Baseball are both inBoston'sFenway Park; the shortest fence that is nearly perpendicular to the foul line is theGreen Monster. The left foul pole, renamed "Fisk's Pole" in honor ofCarlton Fisk's famous home run in the1975 World Series, stands 310 feet away from home plate. The right field foul pole, known asPesky's Pole, is 302 feet down the right field line, although the wall there is nearly parallel to the foul line as it curves back to the distant right field wall at 380 feet. From 1958 through 1961, theLos Angeles Dodgers played home games inLos Angeles Memorial Coliseum, a stadium built fortrack and field; without the ability to move any of the permanent stadium structure, the Dodgers configured the field to result in a 251-foot left field foul line distance.
