With one out and the runner from third attempting to steal home, the batter interferes with the catcher.

• A. The runner is out.
• B. The batter is out.
• C. Both the runner and the batter are out.
• D. The result of the play will stand.

Answer: (A)

The key idea here is batter interference. When the batter hinders the catcher while the catcher is trying to make a play on a runner at the plate, the batter is ruled out and the ball is immediately dead. The runners return to the bases they occupied at the moment of the interference, and no run scores on that play.

In this scenario, the runner from third is attempting to score while the batter interferes with the catcher. The interference ends the play right away, so the batter is out and the run cannot count. The effect on the runner is that the play is dead at that moment and, typically, no score is allowed for that attempted run. The important takeaway is that interference by the batter always results in the batter being out and the ball being dead; the runner’s possible score on that play does not stand.