Force Plays and Tag Plays: How Umpires Decide Which Applies
A plain guide to the difference between a force out and a tag out, when a force is removed, why a run does or does not count on the third out, and how the timing play works, with worked examples.
Every out on the bases is made in one of two ways. A fielder either holds the ball and touches the base the runner is forced to reach, or he holds the ball and touches the runner. The first is a force play. The second is a tag play. Most of the confusing moments on the bases come from not knowing which of the two applies, and the umpire settles it by asking one question: was this runner required to leave the base he was on?
The answer matters more than it looks. A force out needs no tag; the runner can be three steps from the base and still be out if the fielder has the ball and is touching the bag. A tag out needs a tag, and touching the base accomplishes nothing. A force also decides whether a run scores when the third out is made, and a force that disappears in the middle of a play can turn a routine out into a mistake.
This guide explains the definition, how a force is lifted, the situations where fans most often go wrong, and the timing play that decides whether a run counts. Every rule below follows the Official Baseball Rules. Youth leagues, high school and college use close variations, so check your own league's rulebook where a detail matters.
What makes a force play
The rulebook defines a force play as a play in which a runner legally loses his right to occupy a base because the batter has become a runner. The wording is precise and worth reading twice. A runner is forced only when the batter's action requires him to move, because the batter needs the base.
The batter becomes a runner in several ways: by hitting a fair ball, by drawing a walk, by being hit by a pitch, through catcher's interference, or by reaching on a dropped third strike when the rules allow it. Whenever one of these things happens, the runner on first is pushed to second, because the batter now needs first. A runner on second is pushed only if first base is also occupied, and a runner on third is pushed only if first and second are both occupied.
The test is a simple count. Start at the plate and work around the bases toward the runner. If every base behind him is occupied, he is forced. A runner on first alone is forced to second. A runner on second alone is not forced, because first base is empty and the batter can take it without disturbing him. A runner on second with a runner on first is forced, because the runner from first must move up and needs his base. With the bases loaded, everyone is forced, including the runner on third, who must go to the plate.
How a force out is made
The fielder must have possession of the ball and touch the base before the runner reaches it. Possession means control, not a deflection or a juggle. Once the ball is secure in the glove or hand, the fielder may touch the base with any part of his body, and the order of foot and ball does not matter for a runner who has not arrived yet. What counts is that the fielder has both the ball and the base before the runner is on the bag.
Two points surprise people. First, a fielder does not have to tag the runner on a force play, though many do out of habit. Second, he is allowed to tag the runner instead of touching the base, if that is easier. A force gives the defense two ways to make the out, and a tag play gives it one.
The batter-runner heading for first base is always in a force situation, because the batter has become a runner and there is no base behind him to protect. Whether the ball goes to the first baseman, to the pitcher covering the bag or to a second baseman who ranges to his right, the play is the same: ball and base, or ball and runner.
What a tag out needs
A tag play applies when the runner is not forced. The fielder must touch the runner with the ball, or with the hand or glove that holds it, and the runner must not be touching his base at that instant. A runner on a base he is entitled to is safe. Nothing takes his right to the bag away.
The tag has to come with secure possession. A ball that pops out of the glove when the fielder hits the ground, before he has control of it, does not make an out. Umpires therefore watch the ball as well as the runner on every tag, especially at second base and home plate, where slides and collisions lead to dropped balls.
Everything that is not a force is a tag. That includes a runner who has overrun a base and is off the bag, a runner caught in a rundown, a runner trying to stretch a single into a double, and any runner who tries to advance beyond the base he was forced to reach. A runner on first who is thrown out at third trying to go first to third on a single is a tag play, because the batter did not push him to third.
When the force is lifted
This is the part that causes most of the arguments. A force exists only while someone behind the runner still needs his base. When the runner behind him, or the batter-runner at the back of the chain, is put out, the force on the runner ahead disappears. From then on the defense has to tag him.
Two worked examples show how this plays out.
The batter-runner is put out first. There is a runner on first and none out. The batter grounds to the shortstop, who throws to first, and the batter-runner is out. The runner who left first is running to second, and because nobody is behind him now, he is no longer forced. If the first baseman throws to second, the second baseman must tag the runner. Stepping on second does nothing.
A trailing runner is put out first. There are runners on first and second and none out. The batter grounds to the shortstop, who steps on second base for a force on the runner from first. That runner is out. The runner going from second to third, who a moment before was forced because the runner from first was behind him, is no longer forced. If the shortstop throws to third, the third baseman must tag the runner. If the shortstop had thrown to third first, the runner from second would have been forced and a step on the bag would have been enough, with the runner from first still to be retired at second. The same ground ball and the same two throws can produce an out or nothing, depending on the order.
The practical rule for fielders is to take the force that is available now and to remember what each out does to the others. The best defensive players say it to themselves before the pitch: where is my force, and what happens to it if I get the lead runner?
Six situations that decide most arguments
- Bases loaded, ground ball to the pitcher. The pitcher throws home, and the catcher steps on the plate with the ball. The runner from third is out, with no tag, because he was forced. The catcher can then throw to first for the batter-runner, and that is a double play.
- Runner on second only, ground ball to the shortstop. The runner is not forced, because first base is empty. If he runs to third, the defense has to tag him, either with the ball on the way or at third base. A fielder who steps on third without a tag has made no out.
- Runner on third, fewer than two outs, ground ball to the infield. The runner on third is not forced when first is open. If he breaks for the plate, the catcher must tag him. If the fielder throws to first for the batter-runner instead, the runner may score on the play.
- Runner on first, dropped third strike. With first base occupied and fewer than two outs, the batter is out when strike three is dropped, and he may not run. Because the batter did not become a runner, the runner on first is not forced. With two outs, the batter may run, and then the runner on first is forced again.
- Walk with the bases loaded. The batter becomes a runner, every runner is forced to move up one base, and the runner on third scores. The ball stays live, though a runner who goes beyond his awarded base does so at his own risk.
- Line drive caught by an infielder with a runner on first. The batter is out on the catch. The runner on first was not forced to go anywhere, and he must get back. In practice the defense plays it like a force: touch first base with the ball in hand, or tag the runner, before he gets back. That is the rule on runners who fail to retouch, and it is the basis of the double play on a line drive.
The pivot at second base and the neighborhood play
The force at second base is the play where theory and practice disagree most. For many years umpires allowed a custom known as the neighborhood play. A middle infielder turning a double play would catch the ball and release it while his foot was near the base, and the umpire would call the runner out. The rulebook never made an exception for it. It was a courtesy that protected the fielder from a runner sliding hard into him.
The arrival of replay review in 2014 made the custom more awkward, because video could show that a foot had not touched the bag. The league's replay rules have treated the neighborhood play in different ways over the years, so check the current MLB rules for what can be reviewed. The lesson for players is simple: catch the ball, touch the base, then throw. A fielder who skips the touch to protect himself is relying on an umpire's custom, not on the rule.
The runner has duties too. Before the 2016 season baseball adopted a rule requiring a runner sliding into a base to make a legitimate attempt to reach it and to stay on it, and not to change the fielder's actions with a roll block or a slide aimed away from the bag. The change followed a violent play in the 2015 playoffs. If a runner breaks the rule on a double-play attempt, the umpire calls the batter-runner out as well. Obstruction and interference are the neighboring rules, and they are worth learning in the same sitting.
The third out and whether a run scores
The distinction between force and tag has a bookkeeping consequence. A run does not count if the runner crosses the plate on a play where the third out is made by the batter-runner before he reaches first base, by any runner being forced out, or by a preceding runner who is out on appeal for missing a base. A run can count if the third out is a tag play and the runner touches home plate before the tag.
That is the time play, and the clearest example is this. There are two outs and a runner on third. The batter singles, and the runner on third heads for the plate. The batter-runner tries to stretch the hit into a double and is tagged out at second base. Because that out is a tag play, the order of events is what matters. If the runner from third touched the plate before the tag, the run counts. If the tag came first, the inning is over and the run does not count.
Now change the situation. With two outs and the bases loaded, a ground ball is hit to the shortstop, who steps on second for the force on the runner from first. The runner from third crosses the plate before the shortstop touches the base. The run does not count, because the third out was a force out. The runner's speed does not matter. The ground ball made the force the third out, and the inning ended the moment the shortstop touched the base.
Coaches teach runners on third to run on contact with two outs for this reason: on a ground ball with a force at another base, there is nothing to be gained by waiting, because the play could end before the runner gets home. On a ball hit to the outfield that might produce a tag play, the timing play might favor the runner, and a good base coach is working out the arithmetic in his head.
Appeals and missed bases
A force or a tag is not the only way to record an out on the bases. A runner who misses a base, or leaves a base too early on a caught fly ball, can be put out on appeal. The defense appeals by touching the missed base with the ball, or tagging the runner, and telling the umpire. The appeal has to be made before the next pitch or play, and the umpire decides.
An appeal out can also be the third out. When a preceding runner is called out on appeal for failing to touch a base, the runs of the runners behind him do not count if that was the third out. This is the rule that makes a missed-base appeal at the end of an inning so powerful. The sequence of events on the field can look like runs scoring and end up as none.
Common mistakes by fielders and runners
A few habits cause most of the errors at the youth level and beyond.
- Tagging the base when a tag is needed. After a force is lifted, a fielder who steps on the bag has done nothing. This is the most common mistake in relay and rundown plays.
- Throwing before the ball is secure. On a force play at second, a throw that leaves the hand before the fielder has control of the ball is a gamble, and umpires often rule the runner safe.
- Treating a caught fly ball as a force. A caught fly ball makes the batter out, and the runners must retouch. The throw back to the base is a different play from a force.
- Overrunning a base other than first. The batter-runner may overrun first base and return, but a runner who runs past second or third can be tagged off the bag.
- Forgetting the count. Count from the plate to see who is really being pushed. A runner on second with first base empty is not forced, whatever the fielder hopes.
For young players, baserunning fundamentals covers the habits that keep a runner out of trouble, and tagging up and the sacrifice fly explains the fly-ball version of the same question.
How scorers record the difference
The distinction also appears on the scoresheet. When a ground ball leads to a force out and the batter reaches first safely, the play is a fielder's choice: the fielder chose to put out another runner, and the batter is not credited with a hit unless the scorer judges that he would have reached safely anyway. When a runner is thrown out trying to take an extra base after a hit, the batter is credited with the hit, and the runner is charged with the out. A scorer who understands force and tag can read most plays from the order of the fielders' numbers. The site's scoresheet tool is a good place to practice.
Common questions
Does the fielder have to tag the runner on a force play? No. The fielder needs the ball and the base. A tag is an alternative, and it also works.
What if the fielder touches the base and drops the ball? There is no out, because possession is required. If the ball is not secure when the fielder touches the base, the runner is safe.
Is the batter-runner at first base always forced? Yes, because there is no runner behind him. The play at first is a force play, and a tag of the runner is also legal.
Why do umpires sometimes call a runner out without a tag? On a force play the tag is unnecessary. If the fielder has the ball and touches the base before the runner arrives, the runner is out.
What is an appeal play? It is a play where the defense claims that a runner missed a base or left too early. The fielder touches the base in question, or tags the runner, and asks the umpire to rule. The appeal must come before the next pitch.
Where to go next
For the fly-ball side of baserunning, read tagging up and the sacrifice fly. To see how umpires handle another group of judgment calls, try the ground-rule double and other dead-ball rules. The site's scoresheet and stat calculator let you work through plays like the examples above, and the rules pages at MLB.com are the source for any wording that matters.