Monday at Rogers Centre produced the strangest play of the 2026 season — and possibly the most confusing thing you’ll see on a baseball field all year. The Blue Jays beat the Red Sox 2-1, with the decisive run scored by a player who never tagged up. Umpire Chris Guccione had to stop the game, gather both managers, and send the play to New York for review. The reason: the time play rule had just decided the ballgame.
What Happened in the Seventh Inning, Step by Step
Toronto led 2-0 heading into the seventh with Boston putting runners on first and second with nobody out. Nick Sogard lined one toward Vladimir Guerrero Jr., the ball hit the turf, and Guerrero threw to second for an out. The stadium scoreboard flashed two outs — and the play was announced to media as a double play. It wasn’t. That miscommunication planted the seeds for total chaos.
Thinking there were two outs, Ceddanne Rafaela stepped up and hit a fly ball to center. Brett Bateman caught it. Some fielders started walking toward the dugout convinced it was the third out. Others just stood there, frozen. Anthony Seigler, the runner at third, jogged home — without tagging up, which under normal circumstances would immediately void the run.
But Toronto never appealed. And that’s where the whole thing turns.
The Time Play: The Rule Almost Nobody Knows Until They See It Live
Guccione stopped play and explained it right there on the field: «What we have here is a time play.» Here’s the concept in plain terms:
- If the third out is recorded at first base on a force play (as was the case with Rafaela’s flyout being ruled a sacrifice fly), any runner who crosses the plate before that third out is recorded can score — even without tagging up.
- What matters is whether the defensive team appeals the missed tag-up.
- Toronto did not appeal in time. That forfeited their right to erase Seigler’s run.
New York’s review confirmed it: the run counted. Rafaela was credited with a sacrifice fly. The scoreboard read 2-1, and that’s how it ended. Seigler scored because the Jays said nothing. This was a rule of appeal, not a bang-bang play.
The Result Still Matters: Toronto Closes In on a Wild Card Spot
Beyond the bizarre sequence, the 2-1 win carried real weight in the standings. With the victory, Toronto (57-63) leapfrogged the Mariners in the American League wild card race and pulled to within three games of a postseason spot.
Charles McAdoo hit the go-ahead home run in the fifth inning — his second career big-league homer, hours after being called up from Triple-A Buffalo. Simeon Woods Richardson, also promoted from Buffalo that same day, threw three innings and allowed Boston’s only run.
On the other side, Sonny Gray kept being Sonny Gray: now 14-3 on the season, he worked six innings and gave up just two runs. Losing this one wasn’t on him. Louis Varland closed it out for his 25th save.
Toronto won the game. The rulebook won the moment.
