One of baseball’s rarest rules came into play during the Boston Red Sox vs Toronto Blue Jays game on August 10, 2026. With one out and runners on first and third, Boston’s runners mistakenly believed there were two outs and took off on a fly ball to center field.

The catch recorded the second out, and Toronto appealed at first base for the third out because the runner failed to tag up. However, the runner from third crossed home plate before the appeal, allowing the run to count because it was not a force play.

Toronto could have erased the run by making a “fourth-out” appeal at third base, but the fielders left fair territory before doing so. After a rules check with New York, the run was officially awarded to Boston.

A similar “fourth out” situation occurred on June 29, 2022, when the Nationals failed to appeal at third base before leaving the field, allowing a Pirates run to count. Watch the play here.