GUIDES · BETSLIP DOCTOR
Which MLB runner is out when two runners pass each other before the lead runner is retired?
Rule 5.09(b)(9) calls the following runner out when that runner passes a preceding runner before the preceding runner is out. The rule does not require a tag or proof that the following runner intended to pass. The Comment says either runner’s actions can produce the passing, including a lead runner who moves back across the following runner’s path. Passing is different from two runners simply touching the same base, and the lead runner is not automatically out just because the other runner passed.
For Fans and players trying to identify the out when runners reverse relative order rather than merely sharing a base. · Updated
The following runner is the one called out
The test is relative order: did the following runner pass a preceding runner before the preceding runner was out? If so, Rule 5.09(b)(9) makes the following runner out. A tag is not an element of this passing rule.
The preceding runner’s status matters. Once that runner is out, this particular rule no longer treats them as a live preceding runner to be passed.
Either runner can cause the passing
The Comment says the passing may be based on the actions of the following runner or the preceding runner. For example, a lead runner may retreat while the following runner continues forward; the following runner can pass the lead runner because of that movement.
A preceding runner who returns to an unoccupied base before being put out may remain entitled to that base, subject to the base-entitlement and abandonment rules. That does not change which runner the passing rule identifies as out.
Passing is different from sharing a base
Two runners touching the same base without passing each other is not this rule’s test. Base occupation and force priority are separate questions. This guide addresses only a change in the runners’ relative order before the lead runner is retired.
A fictional retreat on the bases
In a fictional play, a ball drops safely into the outfield. Ari runs from first past second, then retreats toward first after misreading the play. Batter-runner Bo continues around first toward second and passes Ari while Ari is retreating, before Ari is retired. Bo, the following runner, is out under Rule 5.09(b)(9); the lead runner’s movement can create the passing. Ari may return to an unoccupied base before being put out, subject to the separate entitlement and abandonment rules. In a separate play, two runners who merely touch the same base without passing are not decided by this rule.
Related questions
Does the following runner need to touch the lead runner to be out?
No. Rule 5.09(b)(9) is about passing before the preceding runner is out; it does not add a tag requirement.
Can the lead runner’s retreat cause the passing?
Yes. The Comment says the passing can result from either runner’s actions.
Are two runners out just because they touch the same base?
That is not the passing rule’s test. Sharing a base without passing is a separate base-occupation question.