Many plays in baseball and softball come down to the discretion of the umpire, especially plays at the bases. Players, coaches and fans will look to the umpire to make the call in these situations, and the umpire needs to be decisive so there is no confusion about his signal. The umpire must accompany the hand motion for "safe" with a verbal call, and the same is true for an "out" call.
Step 1
Hold your palms, face down, at shoulder level and extend your hands out to your side. You can repeat the gesture two or three times for effect, but make the decision quickly with no hesitation in your motion. If you hesitate, you open yourself up to questioning and perhaps arguments from coaches and players.
Step 2
Shout "safe" at a loud volume to accompany your hand gesture. If the play is not close, you may not need to verbalize your call. But on close plays, it is important that players who do not have their eyes on the umpire still are made aware of the call.
Step 3
Gesture with both hands in one direction if you decide that a throw pulled the first baseman off the base, allowing the batter to reach safely. Umpires do not use this gesture universally, but it differs from the regular safe call to provide added explanation about why a runner was safe. Motion in the direction the first baseman was pulled off the bag.
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