The Brewers hosted the Cardinals on June 14, 2025. In the bottom of the first, the Brewers had Sal Frelick on first and no outs. Jackson Chourio was facing Andre Pallante with a 2-2 count. Chourio struck out swinging and it appeared that catcher Pedro Pagés threw out Frelick who attempted to steal second. But second base umpire Dan Merzel ruled that second baseman Nolan Gorman had obstructed Frelick.

Ruleball Comments

• In my opinion this was a good call because Gorman dropped a knee to block the base before he had possession of the ball.
• This is a Type 1 obstruction. The runner is awarded the base after the last base touched. Therefore, Frelick was awarded second base.
  If you watch the play carefully, Chourio came close to being called out for batter interference on the swinging miss strikeout, but plate ump Vic Carapazza had no interference.
• If Chourio was called out for batter interference, Frelick would also be called out under rule 6.01 (a) (5), and the obstruction call would have been nullified.

In the next two plays, the penalty under the rule violation allowed the runner on third to score in separate games. One play involved a third disengagement balk while the other play was a catcher’s interference violation. Knowing the time and score of the game is vital to pitchers and catchers in such situations.

Rich Marazzi
Rules consultant/analyst: Angels, Dodgers, Mets, Nationals, Orioles, Padres, Phillies, Pirates, Red Sox, Rangers, Royals, Tigers, Twins, White Sox, Yankees, YES, and Chicago Sports Network