[greymule]

(assuming this is the proper interp of the rule... of which, I'm still not convinced.)

I'm not convinced, either, but I can think of two plays on which I'd want to rule differently, though the same principle is involved.

Play 1. Runner on 3B breaks for home on a suicide squeeze. The batter missed the signal and swings, hitting a high pop in the infield. The runner's momentum takes him to the plate, but after he touches he scrambles back toward 3B and is most of the way there when the ball drops untouched and fair. The runner slides back into 3B.

Play 2. Same but the batter hits a soft liner that F9 charges and has a chance to catch. The runner, after touching home, retreats toward 3B for a few steps and then F9 traps the ball. The runner, not sure whether the ball was caught, continues back to 3B and then learns the ball was trapped.

I'm confident that the run should score in Play 2, and since Play 1 is the same in principle, the run should score there, too. However, I admit that if Play 1 happened to me, I'd probably keep the runner at 3B (and find out later that I had erred).