The first batter of the game enters the batter's box with an illegal bat. What is the ruling?

The first batter of the game enters the batter's box with an illegal bat. What is the ruling?

• A. The batter is declared out and the head coach is restricted to the dugout/bench.
• B. The batter is allowed to secure a legal bat since a pitch has not been thrown.
• C. The batter and the head coach are ejected.
• D. The batter is out and the assistant coach must go sit on the bus.

Answer: (A)

An illegal bat by the batter creates an automatic out. The moment the bat is determined to be illegal, the batter is ruled out and the ball is dead. In addition, the head coach is restricted to the dugout/bench to prevent coaching or arguing about the equipment. This applies even before any pitch is thrown—the penalty is the same. The batter cannot switch to a legal bat after the fact, and there isn’t an ejection of both the batter and coach for this situation. So the result is: the batter is out and the head coach is restricted to the dugout/bench.

An illegal bat by the batter creates an automatic out. The moment the bat is determined to be illegal, the batter is ruled out and the ball is dead. In addition, the head coach is restricted to the dugout/bench to prevent coaching or arguing about the equipment. This applies even before any pitch is thrown—the penalty is the same. The batter cannot switch to a legal bat after the fact, and there isn’t an ejection of both the batter and coach for this situation. So the result is: the batter is out and the head coach is restricted to the dugout/bench.