OT: The Rarest Play in Baseball

[Doctor Worm]

This is a play that has never occurred in a major league game, but allegedly did occur in a minor league spring training game in 1986.

It is a triple play in which no fielder touches the ball.

Here's how it happened, according to one of the players in that game: First and second, no outs. Hit and run play is called (back when hit and run was a thing), and both runners take off, neither of whom is watching the ball.

The batter hits an infield pop and is immediately called out under the infield fly rule. One out.

The runner on second, not knowing the ball was hit, slides into third. The coach screams at him to get up and go back to second. He tries to do so, but...

The runner on first, who apparently thought the ball would carry to the outfield and drop safely, rounded second and sped to third - and passed the lead runner who was returning to second. The trailing runner is therefore called out. Two outs.

And... before the lead runner had safely returned to second, the descending pop fly hit him! So he too is out. A triple play in which no fielder touched the ball.

Did it actually happen? Who knows? But even the theoretical possibility is fun to think about.

That time a team turned a triple play without touching the ball | Sporting News

It actually happened in a professional baseball game.

www.sportingnews.com

 

[zappaa]

lol
Runners are taught to watch the ball on a hit and run.
If it was a straight double steal, infielders can put some great fakes on to deceive you

 

[Source]

How does a pitcher strike out a batter yet never face him?

 

[BillyC80]

lol
Runners are taught to watch the ball on a hit and run.
If it was a straight double steal, infielders can put some great fakes on to deceive you

Hey Zap, why isn’t it called a ‘run and hit?’

 

[zappaa]

Hey Zap, why isn’t it called a ‘run and hit?’

A true hit and run means you must swing and make contact, obviously best in hitters counts, runners do not attempt to get a good jump

 

[colbert17]

How does a pitcher strike out a batter yet never face him?

Three clock violations?

 

[Altrev]

How does a pitcher strike out a batter yet never face him?

Hitter is a woman?

 

[BillyC80]

A true hit and run means you must swing and make contact, obviously best in hitters counts, runners do not attempt to get a good jump

Always thought it should have been called a ‘run and hit’ since the runners take off before the batter swings.

 

[BillyC80]

Hitter is a woman?

These days you can’t be too sure 😉

 

[Source]

Three clock violations?

That involves automatic balls, not strikes.

Surprised zapaa hasn't jumped in here since the question actually happened shortly after his batting slot in a 1978 game.

 

[BillyC80]

How does a pitcher strike out a batter yet never face him?

I have no idea, unless for some reason the batter refuses to get in the batter’s box and the umpire allows the pitcher to go ahead and pitch without the batter in position.

 

[Doctor Worm]

Three clock violations?

That involves automatic balls, not strikes.

An automatic strike can be called against the hitter if he is not in the box and ready to hit within eight seconds.

 

[Source]

I have no idea, unless for some reason the batter refuses to get in the batter’s box and the umpire allows the pitcher to go ahead and pitch without the batter in position.

That's not the answer I was looking for although the automatic balls and strikes for the new rules violations does open up some intriguing situations. The pitcher would still get the strikeout for "facing" the batter who refused to get in the batter's box in time.

My question was rooted more in the days before the violation rules.

It actually happened back on September 4, 1978 in a game between the Mets and the Pirates.

 

[wheezer]

This is a play that has never occurred in a major league game, but allegedly did occur in a minor league spring training game in 1986.

It is a triple play in which no fielder touches the ball.

Here's how it happened, according to one of the players in that game: First and second, no outs. Hit and run play is called (back when hit and run was a thing), and both runners take off, neither of whom is watching the ball.

The batter hits an infield pop and is immediately called out under the infield fly rule. One out.

The runner on second, not knowing the ball was hit, slides into third. The coach screams at him to get up and go back to second. He tries to do so, but...

The runner on first, who apparently thought the ball would carry to the outfield and drop safely, rounded second and sped to third - and passed the lead runner who was returning to second. The trailing runner is therefore called out. Two outs.

And... before the lead runner had safely returned to second, the descending pop fly hit him! So he too is out. A triple play in which no fielder touched the ball.

Did it actually happen? Who knows? But even the theoretical possibility is fun to think about.

That time a team turned a triple play without touching the ball | Sporting News

It actually happened in a professional baseball game.

www.sportingnews.com

Thoughts
That would have to be one major league high pop up, in order for one base runner to pass the other and then still.have the ball hit a runner in the end

The first and third bases coaches must have been on vacation, since the ball was hit high and never left the infield
What were they doing ?

 

[zappaa]

That involves automatic balls, not strikes.

Surprised zapaa hasn't jumped in here since the question actually happened shortly after his batting slot in a 1978 game.

So you’re saying it happened to a hitter on the Pirates in 1978 in a game i played in?
No clue

 

[Barnaby&Neill]

That's not the answer I was looking for although the automatic balls and strikes for the new rules violations does open up some intriguing situations. The pitcher would still get the strikeout for "facing" the batter who refused to get in the batter's box in time.

My question was rooted more in the days before the violation rules.

It actually happened back on September 4, 1978 in a game between the Mets and the Pirates.

I cheated and looked it up, pretty interesting scoring quirk

 

[retired711]

So you’re saying it happened to a hitter on the Pirates in 1978 in a game i played in?
No clue

PIRATES 7TH: Ott singled to right; Hodges allowed a passed ball
[Ott to second]; Hodges allowed a passed ball [Ott to third]; B.
Robinson homered [Ott scored]; LOCKWOOD REPLACED JACKSON
(PITCHING); Milner flied out to center; Garner singled to left;
BOYLAND BATTED FOR WHITSON; Garner stole second; Debut game
for Doe Boyland; KOBEL REPLACED S. HENDERSON (PITCHING);
YOUNGBLOOD REPLACED LOCKWOOD (PLAYING LF); STENNETT BATTED FOR
BOYLAND; Stennett struck out (strikeout was charged to Boyland);
Taveras singled to center [Garner scored, Taveras to second (on
throw to home)]; Moreno grounded out (pitcher to first); 3 R, 4
H, 0 E, 1 LOB. Mets 4, Pirates 5.

https://www.ultimate70s.com/mlbbox/19780904/NYN/PIT/1

So Stennett must have pinch-hit for Boyland (playing his first major league game) after the pitching change with two strikes on Boyland. Imagine striking out in your major league debut without even being in the batter's box!

 

[retired711]

PIRATES 7TH: Ott singled to right; Hodges allowed a passed ball
[Ott to second]; Hodges allowed a passed ball [Ott to third]; B.
Robinson homered [Ott scored]; LOCKWOOD REPLACED JACKSON
(PITCHING); Milner flied out to center; Garner singled to left;
BOYLAND BATTED FOR WHITSON; Garner stole second; Debut game
for Doe Boyland; KOBEL REPLACED S. HENDERSON (PITCHING);
YOUNGBLOOD REPLACED LOCKWOOD (PLAYING LF); STENNETT BATTED FOR
BOYLAND; Stennett struck out (strikeout was charged to Boyland);
Taveras singled to center [Garner scored, Taveras to second (on
throw to home)]; Moreno grounded out (pitcher to first); 3 R, 4
H, 0 E, 1 LOB. Mets 4, Pirates 5.

https://www.ultimate70s.com/mlbbox/19780904/NYN/PIT/1

So Stennett must have pinch-hit for Boyland (playing his first major league game) after the pitching change with two strikes on Boyland. Imagine striking out in your major league debut without even being in the batter's box!

BTW, Boyland has had a good life.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Doe_Boyland