Major League Baseball and the Atlantic League have been experimenting with a variety of rule changes during the second half of the Atlantic Leagues’ season. One of the rules adjustments altered what players can do if the catcher doesn’t manage to catch a pitch “in flight,” giving the players the ability to try to steal first base when that happens.
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On Saturday, according to a report by Dead Spin, Southern Maryland Blue Crabs outfielder Tony Thomas got to take advantage of the rule change. Ultimately, this allowed Thomas to make history.
While facing off against the Lancaster Barnstormers, Thomas headed to the batter’s box. On the second pitch, the ball flew past the catcher.
After a brief pause in the action, Thomas seemingly figured out that, since the ball was not “caught in flight” by the catcher, he had an opportunity.
As the ball rolled toward the backstop, Thomas sprinted away from home plate toward first.
The catcher wasn’t able to pick up the ball and get it to first base before Thomas was safe. As a result, Thomas became the first player in baseball history to actually steal first base.
Tony Thomas made baseball history by stealing first base last night. Here what he had to say. #GameChanger pic.twitter.com/BQdXRvhp4D
— SoMD Blue Crabs (@BlueCrabs) July 14, 2019
The rule change is only in place at the professional level in the Atlantic League, though it is an experiment that Major League Baseball had a say in, allowing it to potentially serve as an experiment that could cause the new rule to go into effect on a broader scale in the future.
For the first time in baseball history a player stole first base thanks to the Atlantic League-MLB partnership rule changes! @ESPNAssignDesk pic.twitter.com/yj4FkcZg6O
— SoMD Blue Crabs (@BlueCrabs) July 14, 2019