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Not even the Automated Balls and Strikes (ABS) system can explain reaching base after a strikeout, and this is no April Fool’s joke.
Houston Astros’ Cam Smith swung and missed on the first three pitches of a plate appearance Tuesday, but still managed to draw a walk.
The count reached 0-1, but on the second pitch, which Smith missed, a throwing error by Boston Red Sox catcher Connor Wong on an attempted stolen base brought in a runner from third, making the score 6-1 for the Astros.
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Houston Astros right fielder Cam Smith (11) walks against the Los Angeles Angels in the sixth inning at Daikin Park. (Thomas Shea/Image Images)
That brought the score to 0-2, but with the mistake, it seemed like everyone had forgotten what the score was. Smith then swung and missed on the next pitch, but nothing happened on what should have been the third strike.
Smith then fouled on the next pitch, saw one ball, committed another, saw another out of the zone, and then committed one more foul. Smith then took first base on what was actually ball three, which really shouldn’t have been anything.
So in total, there were three swinging strikes and three balls, but Smith walked. And no one in the field realized what was wrong.
Cam Smith of the Houston Astros reacts after hitting a home run in the seventh inning against the Boston Red Sox at Daikin Park on March 31, 2026 in Houston, Texas. (Houston Astros/Getty Images)
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Red Sox manager Alex Cora didn’t even seem to know what had happened regarding the plate appearance during his postgame availability. Pitcher Brayan Bello said he asked the umpire what the count was, and umpire Mark Wegner admitted his “mistake.”
“I just watched the video,” Wegner told reporters, according to the New York Post. “Somehow I didn’t count the second swing because I said the count was 1-2. It was actually the third strike… I’ve never done that before. I’m not happy with it. I just made a mistake.”
This isn’t the first time a case like this has occurred: A YouTube channel called “Secret Base,” in its “Dorktown” series, highlighted other “two-strike strikeouts, three-ball walks, and other miscounts” in a video posted more than five years ago. At the time the video was made, there were at least 35 events in MLB history, and most of them occurred in the 21st century, oddly enough.
Cam Smith and Jake Meyers of the Houston Astros celebrate a home run in the seventh inning against the Boston Red Sox at Daikin Park on March 31, 2026 in Houston, Texas. (Houston Astros/Getty Images)
The mishap mattered little to the Sox, as they fell 9-2 to the Astros.
