by Professional or not, athletes in all sports make mistakes equivalent to those they practice recreationally.
An example was found this past Friday in a game between the AL West rivals, the Los Angeles Dodgers and the San Francisco Giants.
While the pregame festivities during Dodgers Pride Night took center stage thanks to the invitation of the anti-Catholic protest group Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence, this game required additional tickets to determine a winner.
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Los Angeles Dodgers right fielder Mookie Betts is tagged out at third by San Francisco Giants shortstop Casey Schmitt on a double steal attempt in the eleventh inning at Dodger Stadium. (Jayne Kamin-Oncea-USA Today Sports)
San Francisco got two runs in the top of the 11th to finally break the tie, leaving the game 7-5 in their favor and needing just three more outs for the win.
With the automatic runner on second base, there was already one out in the inning when Dodgers star outfielder Mookie Betts came up to the plate. While he certainly is the man for the dramatic, his jump to third base was not what he had in mind.
But that popup to Casey Schmitt at third quickly turned into a disaster for the Giants … until it turned into a disaster for the Dodgers.
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Schmitt wasn’t decisive enough when the popup was airborne, and after trying to go after it late, he dropped it.
However, to make matters worse, pitcher Jakob Junis picked up the ball and tossed it over the head of first baseman David Villar. There was no reason to throw the ball with Betts already reaching first base.
But Betts got overzealous on the basepaths, resulting in Los Angeles giving away their lucky moment that the Giants had just created.
Michael Busch was at second base and was working his way back there once the popup was dropped because he feared Schmitt might have caught it and doubled him up to end the game.
Casey Schmitt of the San Francisco Giants throws to first base for a second out in the seventh inning against the Dodgers on June 16, 2023 in Los Angeles. (Meg Oliphant/Getty Images)
So when Junis threw it out, Busch had turned third base to head home to make it a one-run game, but hit the brakes when he noticed how quickly right fielder Mike Yastrzemski received the ball.
Betts didn’t realize that when he started scrambling for third base.
In turn, a big problem started with Busch and Betts trying to figure out what to do when the ball quickly changed hands for the Giants in the infield.
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Eventually, Busch was tagged out with Betts running to third base.
So instead of scoring a run and getting another chance to tie the game, the Dodgers got two outs and a runner on third. Freddie Freeman would end up striking out to end the game.
The whirlwind of emotions was too much for the Dodger Stadium crowd, and it didn’t work out in the home team’s favor, making it less attractive to them.
Los Angeles’ Mookie Betts in the sixth inning at Dodger Stadium on June 14, 2023. (Ronald Martinez/Getty Images)
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Nonetheless, baseball fans can rejoice in the knowledge that, even at the highest level, these athletes, though rarely, are sometimes just like us.
