Marlins Catcher Didn't Even Realize He Hit One of the Most Improbable Ground Balls

Nick Fortes had no idea he hit a ball in play.

Marlins catcher Fortes didn't knw what happened after he tried to get our of the way of an inside pitch | Screengrab via @MLB on X/Twitter and NBC Sports Philadelphia

Another day, another baseball play we’ve never seen before.

Miami Marlins catcher Nick Fortes wanted to swing with two strikes against him in the bottom of the sixth inning against the Philadelphia Phillies on Tuesday night. But after starting his swing, he tried to pull back, a move which would result in a strike or a ball depending on the umpire’s call 9,999 times out of 10,000.

But somehow, Fortes’s check swing turned into a grounder, as the 93-mph heater miraculously made contact with the knob of his bat and redirected the dribbling ball into the infield.

He didn't realize the ball was in play, waiting a moment to see what happened before he ran to first. While Fortes was thrown out at first, but the runners on first and second advanced a bag on the fielder's choice—they both later came in to score.

You can watch the wild sequence and heads-up play from Phillies third baseman Alec Bohm here:

A groundout off ... the KNOB of the bat 😱 pic.twitter.com/NtkAuzxn6D

— MLB (@MLB) June 18, 2025

You can file that away in your things you don't see every day folder.

The Marlins and Phillies are in the midst of a four-game weekday series at loanDepot Park in Miami. The Phillies took the first game of the series 5-2 on Monday.

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