What's the rarest thing to happen in baseball?

The Rarest Feat in Baseball: One Player, Three Outs

Baseball is a game of inches, but sometimes it delivers moments that feel almost mythical. Among the rarest? The unassisted triple play—where a single fielder records all three outs in one dazzling sequence. It’s so rare that in over 150 years of Major League Baseball, it has happened only 15 times. That’s fewer than perfect games, which already rank among the sport’s most elusive accomplishments.

This isn’t just about skill—it’s about timing, instinct, and being in the right place at the right time. Typically, these plays unfold with runners on first and second, nobody out, and a line drive or hard ground ball hit straight to a middle infielder. The fielder catches the ball (one out), steps on second base (two), and tags the runner coming from first (three)—all in a matter of seconds. Most players go their entire careers without even seeing one, let alone pulling it off.

The last unassisted triple play in MLB occurred in 2009, when Eric Bruntlett, then with the Philadelphia Phillies, turned an unexpected dash into baseball immortality. It happened not during a tense playoff game, but a regular-season contest against the Mets—proof that history can strike in the quietest moments.

What makes this feat so captivating is its singularity. Unlike home runs or strikeouts, which can be anticipated or even coached for, an unassisted triple play emerges from chaos. It demands lightning-fast reflexes, spatial awareness, and a bit of luck. No two have ever played out exactly the same way, and each one is etched into baseball lore like a ghost story—told and retold because it’s hard to believe they actually happened.