These are the rules behind some of baseball's strangest arguments. Learn the basic call here, then check your league or tournament for age-specific changes.
This is a field-side explanation, not a replacement for the rulebook. Unless noted otherwise, the examples follow MLB's Official Baseball Rules. Youth and tournament rules can differ.
Not if the third out is a force out. It also does not count when the batter-runner is retired before reaching first. On a non-force tag play, timing can matter, so a runner who touches home before the tag may score.
Crossing home first is not enough. You also have to know what kind of third out ended the inning.
No. The fielder's feet do not make the call. For a touched ball, the ball's location at first touch matters. For an untouched ball, the answer can depend on where it settles, where it first lands beyond a base, or whether it passes first or third in fair territory.
A player can stand in foul territory and touch a fair ball, or stand in fair territory and reach over to touch a foul ball. A ball that hits home plate can still become fair.
With fewer than two outs and runners on first and second, or the bases loaded, the umpire can call an infield fly on a fair fly ball that an infielder can catch with ordinary effort. Line drives and attempted bunts do not qualify. The batter is out whether the ball is caught or not. Runners are not forced to advance.
The rule stops the defense from intentionally dropping an easy fly to create a cheap double or triple play.
If strike three is not caught cleanly, the batter may try for first when first base is unoccupied or when there are two outs. The defense still has to tag the batter or record the out at first.
The scorebook still records a strikeout, even when the batter reaches safely.
The runner is not always called out automatically. The defense usually has to make a proper appeal before the next pitch or play. Leaving early on a caught fly ball and missing a base are common appeal plays.
A play can look finished while the defense still has a chance to record an out by knowing what to appeal and when.
Interference generally involves the offense hindering a defender who is making a play. Obstruction involves a defender without the ball, and not fielding it, impeding a runner. The penalty and whether play stops depend on the situation.
Both can involve contact, but contact is not required. The key question is who hindered whom and what each player was entitled to do.
Before the plate appearance ends, the correct batter can take over the count. After the wrong batter finishes, the defense can appeal before the next pitch, play, or attempted play. A successful appeal calls out the batter who should have batted and cancels advances caused by the wrong batter's completed appearance. The lineup then continues after the batter called out. If the appeal window passes, the wrong batter's turn is accepted and the order continues after him.
The umpire does not quietly fix the lineup for either team. Timing and a proper appeal matter.
A balk is an illegal pitching action with runners on base, but youth events often change how it is enforced. Some ages receive warnings. Others use delayed dead-ball enforcement or call balks immediately. The tournament addendum controls.
Knowing the general rule is not enough. This is one of the first places to check for an age-specific exception.
No. Under MLB rules, a foul tip travels sharply from the bat straight to the catcher and is legally caught before touching the ground, even if it first hits the catcher's body or equipment. It counts as a strike and stays live. With two strikes, the batter is out. A caught foul fly is a different kind of out; an uncaught foul ball is dead.
People often use the words foul tip for any slight contact, but the rule has a much narrower meaning.
Find the exact event rules for pitching, bats, time limits, lineups, and local exceptions. Those details change more often than the basic rule does.
Sources last checked August 6, 2026. Always confirm the current rulebook and event addendum before relying on a summary.
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