Explaining the viral 'Fourth Out' rule that took MLB by storm during Red Sox vs Blue Jays

The Boston Red Sox's turnaround since July has been borderline miraculous, part of a hot streak fans may never see again. On August 10, they might've been part of another once in a lifetime baseball event regarding a strange and rare rule.

The Red Sox opened the top of the seventh frame with two singles while the team was down, 2-0. Nick Sogard, the third batter, drilled a line drive toward Vladimir Guerrero Jr. at first base, who played the ball off the bounce to get the out at second base.

Every player on the field seemed to believe that was a double play or that there was already an out on the board. The Toronto Blue Jays' scoreboard showed there were two outs when Ceddanne Rafaela came to the plate after Sogard and lifted a fly ball to center field. Anthony Seigler and Sogard jogged off their bases on contact, without tagging up, because they thought the inning was over. Since there was only one out, the play caused some chaos.

The Jays threw in to first and third base to make sure they got whichever out they needed to end the inning since neither Sox player tagged up. Then came the 16 minute delay, during which MLB headquarters in New York conducted a rules check.

Red Sox benefit from wild, rarely-seen rule during series opener agianst Blue Jays

MLB concluded, per Rule 5.09(c)(4), that the play became an appeal play after Seigler touched home plate. The defending team must appeal that he didn't tag up when he left the bag and before the third out (throwing out Sogard at first base) was made.

Since Seigler scored, Toronto opted to throw to first base, and no appeal was made in time, the Red Sox were granted their run, but the inning ended on the double play. Had the Jays thrown to third base where Seigler had departed without tagging, his run wouldn't have counted and the inning still would have been over. The appeal play overrules the third out, giving Boston what is essentially a "fourth out."

The Red Sox's strange run ultimately did not matter, as they lost the game, 2-1. Managers Chad Tracy and John Schneider had never seen this wild rule played out in a game, but Schneider wasn't happy, since the Red Sox benefitted.

Regardless of what Toronto's scoreboard showed, the players, coaches and umpires on the field should absolutely know how many outs there are in every single inning. There's no excuse for forgetting such a key part of the game, and there's a good argument that the Red Sox shouldn't be rewarded with a run for it, but the rules are the rules.

This isn't the first time Boston was caught unawares on the field this season. In one of the first games of the year in April, Brayan Bello was denied a strikeout because the Red Sox, their coaching staff and the umpiring crew lost track of how many swings Houston Astros Cam Smith had taken. He was awarded a fourth strike, despite taking three swings in the at bat, and the Astros scored on the chaos that followed.

The Bello play from April came before Alex Cora's firing and sweeping coaching changes, so the current managerial crew hasn't made similar mistakes multiple times, but some players have. The Red Sox need to be attentive to the play on the field to give themselves the best chance to win, which is crucial in their upcoming playoff stretch. They got lucky in Toronto, despite their loss, but it won't always work out that way.

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