Cam Smith should’ve struck out. Instead, he managed to work a walk. Kenneth Richmond / Getty Images
March 31, 2026Updated 10:42 pm EDT
HOUSTON — ABS hasn’t removed the human element from Major League Baseball, a fact accentuated by an apparent mistake on Tuesday night at Daikin Park.
Home-plate umpire and crew chief Mark Wegner appeared to lose track of the count during a fifth-inning at-bat by Astros right fielder Cam Smith, who worked a walk despite whiffing at the first three pitches he saw from Boston Red Sox starter Brayan Bello.
After Smith swung through the third pitch, Wegner signaled only a strike. Smith froze for a second in the batter’s box, but returned to continue his plate appearance. Wegner held up his hands to show Bello a count that, according to the video, was incorrect.
HP Ump Mark Wegner lost track of the count and it seems like everyone else did too.
This should’ve been a strikeout for Brayan Bello. Instead Cam Smith walked. pic.twitter.com/32w4VXiRWZ
— Tyler Milliken (@tylermilliken_) April 1, 2026
Both MLB Gameday and Baseball Savant labeled Bello’s third pitch as a ball, though video showed Smith swinging and missing. Catcher Connor Wong caught the pitch, too, removing any possibility of a dropped foul tip.
Smith saw six more pitches. Red Sox manager Alex Cora removed Bello from the game after Smith walked to first base.
Chaos erupted after Smith’s second swing and miss, which perhaps impacted Wegner’s track of the count. Astros left fielder Joey Loperfido broke for second base on the pitch — and Wong’s throw down sailed wide of second baseman Marcelo Mayer.
Houston first baseman Christian Walker broke from third base to home on the errant throw. Bello deflected Mayer’s throw home, which allowed Walker to score the game’s sixth run.
Bello recovered to fire an 0-2 pitch that Smith swung straight through. No one seemed to notice it was strike three.
Apr 1, 2026
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