The Texas Rangers got their World Series defense off on a good note, defeating the Chicago Cubs 4-3 in an extra-inning thriller on Opening Day. The penultimate play of the game featured a call from ESPN’s Karl Ravech that didn’t exactly seem on point.
One batter before Texas catcher Jonah Heim delivered a two-out bases loaded single in the tenth inning to seal the win, Rangers rookie Wyatt Langford came up with the bases loaded and only out out. The game nearly ended on that play. Langford hit a chopper to third. Chicago’s Miles Mastrobuoni fielded the ball and delivered a strike home, forcing out Marcus Semien, who was on third base. Only, Ravech didn’t seem to have a full grasp on the situation.
“The force is out. They had an out at first if they wanted it,” he said of the Cubs.
"[The Cubs] had an out at first if they wanted it." – Karl Ravech, clearly unaware that it would've been the winning run scoring for the Rangers with the bases loaded and one out. pic.twitter.com/NLqMAtgSH4
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) March 29, 2024
It’s tough to figure out exactly what Ravech was thinking about here.
Was he saying that Mastrobuoni could have thrown to first to retire the hitter? Possibly. But with only one out and a runner on third, that would have just conceding the winning run. Heck, even JR Smith would scratch his head at that.
It’s possible that he was saying that Chicago’s catcher, Miguel Amaya, could have thrown on to first. But it’s far too bold to say that the Cubs “had an out there if they wanted it.” Langford is a burner on the bases — something he showed off earlier in the game when collecting his first career hit.
You know about Wyatt Langford's power but his first MLB hit comes from his wheels!
Save that ball for MLB's No. 6 prospect: pic.twitter.com/CPukxxPRW8
— MLB Pipeline (@MLBPipeline) March 29, 2024
A 5-2-3 double play is tough to turn in ideal circumstances for the defense. A slow chopper with a fast runner on the back end of a double play is far from an ideal circumstance. Additionally, Semien put enough pressure on the front end of the play that he would have disrupted a potential throw. We saw that as Semien made contact with Amaya’s feet on the slide — just after the catcher caught the ball.
Finally, even if there was an outside chance to get Langford at first, that’s a risky throw, given how possible it would be for the ball to hit the runner and bounce away. And given Langford’s speed, an around-the-horn double play was not a realistic option either.
It’s certainly plausible (and understandable) that he got caught up in the moment and forgot the exact situation. After all, while the games count now, the early part of the MLB regular season still features players knocking off the rust and getting into the full swing of things. The same is true for the announcers.
[Photo Credit: ESPN]
