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In baseball, blocking the plate is a technique performed by a catcher to prevent a runner from scoring. The act of blocking the plate accounted for most of the physical contact in Major League Baseball prior to the 2014 season, when it was outlawed except when the catcher already has possession of the ball. By the rules of baseball, a runner has the right to an unobstructed path to a base. However, this right is not granted if the fielder guarding the base possesses the ball or is in the process of catching the ball. The fielders guarding first base through third base are unlikely to risk physical harm and will generally place themselves out of the path of the runner. The catcher guarding home plate, however, wears padding and a face mask and often placed his body as an obstacle between the runner and home plate, even prior to receiving the ball. Since the runner did not have to worry about remaining on home plate, only tagging it, he typically ran at full speed in an effort to reach the plate. The speed of the runner combined with the fact that the catcher still had to tag him (unless the bases were loaded and the force play at home was still available) made for a dramatic play. Since the 1970 Major League Baseball All-Star Game, there have been rules established, mainly in amateur levels of baseball, against home-plate collisions between runners and catchers to make the obstruction (defense) and interference (offense) rules consistent at the plate with the three bases. The rules, long enforced at lower levels, were implemented at the professional level in 2014. ==Technique== Any time there is a close play at home plate, meaning the ball and runner reach the plate at the same time, the catcher squats in front of the plate to block a clear path. Unless he is willing to be tagged out, the runner who is faced with a blocked plate has two choices. He can: #Attempt to slide around the catcher and avoid being tagged, or, #Collide with the catcher with such force that the catcher has no chance of keeping possession of the ball. The catcher soon becomes aware of which option the runner will choose. If the runner slides, the catcher will make a sweeping motion with his glove to quickly tag the runner out. Otherwise, the catcher must do everything he can to brace for the impact and keep the ball in his glove. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Blocking the plate」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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