Saturday, the second-best day of the weekend (behind Friday), gave us many great MLB moments! Thank goodness we have had baseball in our lives for a full 3 months now; may we have 3 more fruitful months of great baseball to go along with it. Yesterday, we had baseballs hit into fun places, strange substance check shenanigans, and an inside-the-park home run!
They’re Still Checking for Sticky Stuff
When Kershaw’s in the zone, he’s not looking to show off his glove, his belt, or his arms. So, when the umpires don’t want to check him for the sticky stuff, he’s got no complaints.
https://twitter.com/StickyCheck/status/1411474230051549184
The umpire even busted out the jog for Taijuan Walker:
https://twitter.com/StickyCheck/status/1411410585712009220
Jordan Montgomery (JoMo? Is that a thing?) forgot to go get checked:
https://twitter.com/StickyCheck/status/1411375259727667202
By the end of the season, these things are probably going to go away, which makes me very sad. I love seeing the little reactions from pitchers, who generally act as if their honor has been insulted by umpires when they make a substance check.
Chase Field is Perilous
https://gfycat.com/ecstaticwideeyedcarpenterant-san-francisco-diamondbacks-baseball-arizona
I’m not sure why Steven Duggar didn’t act up a little more to show the umpires that the ball became stuck in the padding. But, at least he got the ground-rule double called. No harm, no foul, which makes this one pretty disappointing as far as field mishaps go.
Snek
When you’re done with your beer, what do you do?
You build a snake. Out of beer cups.
🐍 @Athletics fans made a snakey snake 🔊🆙 pic.twitter.com/sNBGZi7DOJ
— FOX Sports: MLB (@MLBONFOX) July 4, 2021
I’ve seen some good beer snakes, especially at Wrigley Field. But this one is one of my favorites because it’s got some wiggle to it! FOX got every evolution of the snake in this video, too.
Mic’d Up Athletes Rule
Lance McCullers Jr. (and pretty much every other athlete) is a lot of fun to listen to when mic’d up:
"GET UP! THAT'S NICE!"@lmccullers43 LOVED that HR from @TeamCJCorrea 🔥 pic.twitter.com/5Iac0KZl7U
— FOX Sports: MLB (@MLBONFOX) July 4, 2021
Seeing players show emotion and cheer on their teammates adds another element to the game experience because you feel like you’re right there alongside the players. Luckily, McCullers was in the cheering mood and his teammates gave him lots to cheer about.
LMJ has to be mic'd up for the rest of the game.#ForTheH pic.twitter.com/Y23OBooWyB
— Houston Astros (@astros) July 4, 2021
I cannot wait for All-Star Week when the best players on the planet get to have fun and cheer on the mic while we (the fans) get to watch.
Do the Haase Hustle
Eric Haase had himself a very good Saturday, hitting a pair of home runs to help the Tigers coast to a win over their AL Central rivals, the White Sox. Luckily, he had a little help from the speedy Billy Hamilton on his first home run of the day:
He does it again! Hammerin' Eric Haase with an Inside the Park home run to give the @tigers the lead! #DetroitRoots pic.twitter.com/STdlZNssWQ
— Bally Sports Detroit (@BallySportsDET) July 3, 2021
It takes a whole lot of composure from Dallas Keuchel not to blow his top after a play like that. I know it technically counts as an inside-the-park home run, but it sure looked like a single and an error by Hamilton. At the very least, he could have gotten in front of that ball and kept two additional runs from scoring, at a minimum. Instead, Keuchel was charged with 3 ER on this play.
At least Haase busted his butt running the bases! He sure did earn all four bases.
A very happy 4th of July to all who celebrate. Eat some delicious food and watch some baseball!
Photo by Icon Sportswire | Adapted by Justin Paradis (@JustParaDesigns of Twitter)