Astros’ Cam Smith swung at strike three, then walked in bizarre mishap

HOUSTON — ABS hasn’t removed the human element from Major League Baseball, a fact accentuated by a massive mistake Tuesday night at Daikin Park.

Home-plate umpire and crew chief Mark Wegner lost track of the count during a fifth-inning plate appearance by Astros right fielder Cam Smith.

As a result, Smith worked a walk despite swinging and missing at the first three pitches he saw from Boston Red Sox starter Brayan Bello. Smith walked on only three balls, too, after Wegner could not recall the correct count.

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

“I’ve never done that before. I’m not happy about it,” said Wegner, a 26-year veteran umpire who served as the crew chief in last October’s World Series. “Just made a mistake.”

Wegner said he did not realize his mistake until reviewing video inside the umpires’ locker room following the Astros’ 9-2 victory. Smith also said “honestly, I had no idea” of the gaffe until teammates alerted him in the dugout.

None of Smith, Bello or catcher Connor Wong said anything on the field, according to Wegner. Red Sox manager Alex Cora indicated to reporters he was unaware of the missed count. His counterpart, Joe Espada, said, “Yeah, I noticed.” However, it would’ve made no competitive sense for him to alert Wegner of his mistake.

“No one on the field said a word,” Wegner said.

Had they, Wegner said that rules would’ve allowed him to call the Major League Baseball replay center in New York to check the count.

Both Smith and Wegner said some of their confusion stemmed from a chaotic play after Smith whiffed on the second pitch of the at-bat. Houston had runners on the corners and, as Smith swung through the pitch, left fielder Joey Loperfido broke from first base to second.

Wong bounced a throw to second baseman Marcelo Mayer, who could not keep the baseball in front of him. Astros first baseman Christian Walker raced home from third base as a result.

When Bello attempted to cut off Mayer’s throw home, the baseball bounced off his glove and into foul territory, and Walker scored the Astros’ sixth run.

After he did, Bello said he asked Wegner for the count. Through an interpreter, Bello said, “(Wegner) was clear that it was 1-1.”

“I asked him because I thought the first pitch was a strike, and then I thought that he swung at the second pitch,” Bello said. “But none of that took me out of my focus on that inning. I tried to get out of that inning, but it didn’t happen.”

Asked whether the action may have affected his track of the count, Wegner said “it must have.”

“That’s the strike that I didn’t count on my indicator,” Wegner said. “Because the next one he swung at, I gave a count that said 1 and 2 and it was the third strike.”

After Smith swung through the third pitch, he froze for a second in the batter’s box, but returned to continue his plate appearance. Video showed Wegner showing Bello a 1-2 count with his hands after the third swing-and-miss.

During the game, both MLB Gameday and Baseball Savant labeled Bello’s third pitch as a ball.

Afterward, Gameday changed it to a strike.

Bello threw six more pitches to Smith, who spoiled three foul and watched three more miss the strike zone. After the final one, Smith sauntered to first base for a walk he did not earn. Cora then emerged from the dugout and ended Bello’s evening.