The official scorekeeper informs the plate umpire that the player who just completed his at bat batted out of order.

• A. The umpire shall ignore the information until the defense legally appeals.
• B. The umpire shall ignore the information until the offense tells him.
• C. The umpire, being aware of the infraction, must enforce the penalty.
• D. The defense must request a video review.

Answer: (A)

Batting out of order is handled as an appeal play. The penalty is not imposed simply because someone informs the umpire; it only takes effect when the defense makes a proper, legal appeal to the plate umpire before the next pitch or the next play. In this situation, the scorekeeper’s information does not constitute that appeal, so the umpire should not act on it yet.

When the defense does make a legal appeal, the umpire then rules that the batter who batted out of order is out, and the correct batter comes to bat in the proper order, with any runners and outs adjusted accordingly. Video review isn’t used here in NFHS baseball, and the defense (not the offense) must initiate the appeal.

So the umpire ignores the report until the defense legally appeals, which is why that option is the correct one.