Here's something I wrote back in 1999, before I had official interpretations to the contrary:

I argue, first, that we should extrapolate our ruling from the FED edict: Award B1 first. I believe umpires who use precedent for points not covered make consistent rulings. They have little need to wonder, to ponder, to decide. The play happens in FED: Batter-runner gets first. The play happens in Stan Musial: Batter-runner gets first. The umpire will look sure of himself, he will face the protest committee (if there is one) with a pure heart and a clean soul.

That's a great argument. It's not true, as you know from the rulings I quoted last week. In OBR (and NCAA, by extrapolation) the ball remains alive.

Speaking of protests and using precedent from one rulebook to another....

Continued...