First Baseman Tags Base, But Not With Foot


 
The batter (B1) grounds to the right of the 1st baseman. The first baseman dives and gloves the ground ball. To retire the speedy B1, the 1st baseman dives toward 1st base and he touches first base with his bare hand (with the ball secured in his glove hand) just before B1 touches 1st base. Is B1 safe or out?

Call
There is a difference between a "tag-out" and a "force-out":

On a tag-out, the runner must be tagged with the ball OR with the glove (but if with the glove, while the ball is held securely in the glove by the fielder).

On a force-out, the base must be touched by the fielder (with any body part) while the fielder securely holds the ball in either hand.

So in the case below, the 1st baseman securely held the ball in his glove, while he tagged first base with his other (ungloved) hand -- before the runner arrived at 1st base, so B1 is forced out.