Key takeaways
- Before each pitch, check two facts: fewer than two out, and runners on both first and second. Without both, there can be no infield fly.
- Once an infield fly is declared the batter is out whether or not the ball is caught, so no runner is forced and nobody has to run.
- Run the bases on a declared infield fly as on any fly ball: advance at your own risk, or retouch and go once the ball is touched.
- Judge the call by ordinary effort from an infielder, not by where the ball lands or who catches it.
- In youth baseball, check your division: Little League says the rule does not apply in Tee Ball, and many local leagues skip it in lower Minor divisions.
An infield fly is a fair pop-up that an infielder could catch with ordinary effort, hit with runners on first and second (or the bases loaded) and fewer than two out. Once the umpire declares it, the batter is out whether the ball is caught or dropped, the ball stays alive, and the runners may advance at their own risk. That is the rule as the 2026 edition of the Official Baseball Rules sets it out for the 2026 season, in its Definition of Terms and Rule 5.09(a)(5).
Read cold, the conditions look arbitrary. They stop looking that way once you see the play the rule was written to prevent.
The trick it prevents
Runners on first and second, one out, and a lazy pop-up drifting towards the shortstop. Both runners are stuck. If they run and the ball is caught, they are off their bases and can be doubled off. If they stay close and the ball falls, they are suddenly forced to run, because the batter has become a runner and is heading for first behind them.
A shortstop who saw this could let the ball drop on purpose, pick it up, step on third and throw to second: two force outs from a ball that should have produced one. MLB's glossary describes the rule as protection against exactly that — a team letting a shallow fly fall in order to force runners who stayed put on a routine pop-up.
The fix is elegant. The rule takes the batter off the field before the ball comes down. The rulebook defines a force play as one where a runner loses his right to a base "by reason of the batter becoming a runner". If the batter is already out, he never becomes a runner, nobody is forced, and a dropped ball earns the defence nothing.
The conditions, and the reason for each
The Official Baseball Rules define an infield fly as "a fair fly ball (not including a line drive nor an attempted bunt) which can be caught by an infielder with ordinary effort", with first and second, or all three bases, occupied before two are out. Taken apart:
| Condition | What the rule requires | Why it is there |
|---|---|---|
| Outs | Fewer than two | With two out, a catch ends the inning anyway, so a deliberate drop cannot gain an extra out |
| Runners | First and second, or the bases loaded | Two runners are forced at once, so one drop could produce two outs |
| Type of hit | A fair fly ball, not a line drive or an attempted bunt | The rulebook treats a line drive (a ball hit "sharp and direct" to a fielder) separately; a deliberate drop of one falls under a different rule, covered below |
| Who could catch it | An infielder, with ordinary effort | The protection applies only when the catch was routine |
"Ordinary effort" is the judgment call
Everything turns on ordinary effort, which the rulebook defines as the effort "a fielder of average skill at a position in that league or classification of leagues should exhibit", allowing for the field and the weather. The infield fly definition and its official comment add four points that settle most arguments:
- The umpire judges whether an infielder could ordinarily have handled the ball, not "some arbitrary limitation such as the grass, or the base lines".
- It is still an infield fly if an outfielder makes the catch, provided an infielder could have handled the ball as easily.
- The pitcher, the catcher and any outfielder stationed in the infield on the play all count as infielders.
- It is not an appeal play. The umpire rules immediately, and when the ball is near the baselines the call is "Infield Fly, if Fair".
So a pop-up caught on the outfield grass can still be an infield fly, while a ball that no infielder could reach with ordinary effort is not one, wherever it comes down. Where the ball lands is evidence; it is not the test.
What happens once it is called
The batter is out under Rule 5.09(a)(5). The ball remains alive. In the rulebook's words, runners "may advance at the risk of the ball being caught, or retouch and advance after the ball is touched", exactly as they would on any other fly ball.
If the ball ends up foul, it is treated like any foul: caught, the batter is out on the catch; uncaught, the at-bat goes on. There is fine print for balls that are never touched. If a declared infield fly lands untouched and bounces foul before passing first or third base, it is a foul ball. If it lands untouched outside the line and bounces fair before passing first or third, it is an infield fly.
When the ball is not caught, the official scorer still has to give someone the putout, and Rule 9.09(c)(1) credits it to the fielder the scorer believes could have made the catch. That is why a box score can show a putout on a ball nobody held, which is worth knowing before you lean on fielding numbers built from putouts and assists, such as the fielding percentage in baseball stats explained for beginners.
What runners should actually do
The practical consequences for a runner are easiest to see side by side.
| What happens to the ball | Is any runner forced? | The runner's options |
|---|---|---|
| Caught | No | Same as any caught fly: retouch, then advance at your own risk once the ball is touched. Leave early and fail to retouch, and you can be called out on appeal (Rule 5.09(c)(1)) |
| Dropped | No — the batter is already out | Stay, or advance at your own risk. With no force in effect, the defence has to tag a runner who tries |
| Ends up foul | — | An ordinary foul ball: runners go back if it is not caught |
The most common mistake is the runner who sees the ball hit the ground and sprints for the next base out of habit. The rule has already removed the force, so that runner has volunteered to be tagged out.
Edge cases the rulebook settles
A deliberate drop
Rule 5.09(a)(12) covers an infielder who intentionally drops a fair fly ball or line drive with first base occupied and fewer than two out: the ball is dead, the batter is out and runners go back. An approved ruling adds that letting the ball fall untouched is not covered, "except when the Infield Fly rule applies".
On a declared infield fly, the comment on the definition says the ball stays in play despite Rule 5.09(a)(12): "The infield fly rule takes precedence." Put together:
- Runners on first and second, or bases loaded, fewer than two out, a routine pop-up: infield fly. Dropping it on purpose changes nothing; the batter is already out and the ball is live.
- Same runners, but a line drive: not an infield fly. Catching it and dropping it on purpose brings Rule 5.09(a)(12) into play — dead ball, batter out, runners return.
- Runner on first only: no infield fly is possible. Letting a pop-up fall untouched and forcing the lead runner is legal; catching it and deliberately dropping it is not.
A runner hit by the ball
A runner hit by a fair ball before it has passed an infielder is normally out, but Rule 5.09(b)(7) makes an exception. A runner touching his base when an infield fly hits him is not out, although the batter is. A runner who is off his base is out along with the batter. Either way the ball is dead, and runners advance only if forced.
Interference during the play
If interference is called while an infield fly is in the air, the ball stays alive until it is clear whether it is fair or foul. Fair, and both the interfering runner and the batter are out. Foul, and the runner is out while the batter returns to bat, even if the foul is caught.
The umpire never makes the call
The professional rulebook says the umpire's judgment governs and the decision should be made immediately. Little League's rules FAQ goes further for its own games: if an umpire fails to declare an obvious infield fly and the defence turns a double play off a ball it deliberately let fall, that is a correctable error, and the recommended fix is to call the batter out and return the runners to their time-of-pitch bases.
In youth baseball
Little League's rulebook uses the same definition in its Rule 2.00, and its help centre lists the same four elements: fewer than two out, runners on first and second or the bases loaded, no bunt or line drive, and a catch an infielder could make with ordinary effort.
Where youth baseball differs is the judgment. Little League's infield fly FAQ says how an umpire assesses ordinary effort may vary with the division, because younger players find any fly ball hard to catch. It also says many local leagues do not enforce the rule in lower Minor divisions, and that by rule it does not apply in Tee Ball. If you coach or umpire youth games, your league's own rules decide which version you are using.
Reading the situation, on a field or on a screen
The infield fly is a two-question rule — how many are out, and which bases are occupied — and the same two facts change the right decision in a great many other situations. Baseball Career Sim 2026 resolves its games with innings, outs, counts and runners on base in view, and the Baseball Career Sim 2026 guide shows how reading that state before the pitch changes what the right choice is. Who comes up in those situations depends on the lineup, which is the subject of how a batting order works.
This article describes the real rulebook, not how any simulator rules on a particular play. If you would rather run the club than play a position, the baseball draft and GM guide covers 162-0 Baseball Draft & GM Team, more rules explainers are collected on our baseball hub, and every game is listed under sports career and GM games.
Baseball Career Sim 2026 is set in a fictional league with fictional teams and players. 162-0 Baseball Draft & GM Team builds its player pool from real players' careers, with ratings that are the game's own estimates. Neither game is affiliated with or endorsed by any league, team, players' association or player. MLB and MLB.com are trademarks of their owners, named here only to identify the rules and definitions cited; Little League is named for the same reason.
Good to know
Frequently asked questions
What is the infield fly rule in simple terms?
Is the batter out if an infield fly is dropped?
Can runners advance on an infield fly?
Does the infield fly rule apply with the bases loaded?
Does the infield fly rule apply in Little League?
Sources
- Official Baseball Rules, 2026 Edition (opens in a new tab)Office of the Commissioner of Baseball — accessed
- Infield Fly | Glossary (opens in a new tab)MLB.com — accessed
- What is the Infield Fly Rule? (opens in a new tab)Little League — accessed
- Rule 2.00: Definition of Terms - Infield Fly Rule FAQs (opens in a new tab)Little League — accessed
League, team and athlete names appear here only to identify the rules, records and history being discussed. Reign Creative LLC's sports games are not affiliated with, endorsed by or licensed by any league, team, players' association or athlete, and all names and marks belong to their owners.
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