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You never know what you might see at the ballpark. You could even see a hug between two players result in an out.
During the top of the third inning of the Boston Red Sox’s 9-8 win over the Seattle Mariners on Monday night at Fenway Park, Red Sox starting pitcher Payton Tolle discovered a new way to record an out.
With one out and no one on base, Mariners designated hitter Dominic Canzone hit a weak dribbler toward the pitcher’s mound. Tolle, all 6-foot-6 and 250 pounds, came barreling off the mound, quickly fielded the ball and then ran toward Canzone along the first-base line.
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Payton Tolle of the Boston Red Sox hugs Dominic Canzone of the Seattle Mariners for an out during the third inning of a game on Aug. 31, 2026, at Fenway Park in Boston, Mass. (Maddie Malhotra/Boston Red Sox/Getty Images)
Canzone, seeing that Tolle had him beat to the first-base bag, slowed down. Tolle, instead of simply tagging Canzone, hugged him for the out.
“It just kind of happened,” Tolle said with a laugh, according to The Athletic. “I was right there in front of him, like, ‘Bring it in for the big one.’”
Tolle said Canzone was probably a little surprised by his embrace.
“I mean, probably for a second,” Tolle said. “But then it’s like, ‘Yeah, this is just going to happen.’”
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Boston Red Sox’s Payton Tolle hugs Seattle Mariners’ Dominic Canzone while making a force out on a ground ball during the third inning of a baseball game Monday, Aug. 31, 2026, in Boston. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa)
As for Tolle and Canzone, that was their first interaction.
“No, but we do (know each other) now,” Tolle said when asked if he had met Canzone before the hug.
For Tolle’s Red Sox teammates, hugs from the big left-hander are nothing new.
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Boston Red Sox pitcher Payton Tolle hugs Seattle Mariners designated hitter Dominic Canzone in the third inning at Fenway Park in Boston, Mass., on Aug. 31, 2026. (Danielle Parhizkaran/The Boston Globe via Getty Images)
“The guy gives hugs all the time, so I’m not sure which one you’re talking about,” Red Sox shortstop Trevor Story joked, according to MLB.com. “But yeah, that was funny, man. Payton’s just a special person. He plays the game like a little kid, which I feel like we all should.”
Tolle pitched 5 2/3 innings and allowed four runs on six hits and two walks while striking out six and earning a no-decision.
The Red Sox (75-63) erased a three-run deficit in the eighth and ninth innings to force extra-innings before winning on Story’s walk-off single. They will look to keep their positive momentum going when they play the Mariners (64-74) in the second game of their three-game series at 6:45 p.m. ET on Tuesday.
