Mets third baseman Brett Baty can’t catch a popup. The ball then hit him in the face. Photo Credit: Fox
FeaturedMLBBy Michael Dixon on

The New York Mets played the 100th game of their season on Saturday night. And in the top of the ninth inning, one play perfectly summed up the first 100 games of the year.

With the top of their order due up in the bottom of the ninth inning, the Mets still had a chance to pull out a victory on Saturday night against the Los Angeles Dodgers. The first step, though, was keeping the Dodgers off of the scoreboard in the top of the inning and keeping the deficit at 2-1.

New York reliever Grant Hartwig was in a jam, facing Los Angeles slugger Max Muncy with runners on second and third and only one out. Hartwig looked like he’d get the non-productive out he needed, though, when Muncy hit a weak popup to third base.

But third baseman Brett Baty had a hard time tracking it. As the ball came down, Baty made a futile attempt at a diving catch. Not only did Baty miss the ball, but it bounced off of the ground and into his face. As the ball trickled away from Baty, Los Angeles’ Mookie Betts trotted home to put the Dodgers up 3-1.

Los Angeles would add two more in the inning and went on to a 5-1 victory.

Baseball fans had no problem finding the humor in this error.

https://twitter.com/mdudas/status/1680409455802953729

For anyone wondering, the Mets were trailing 2-1 at that point because of two other brutal sequences.

With the game tied at 1-1 in the top of the eighth inning, the Dodgers had runners on the corners with one out. It looked as though Adam Ottavino got an inning-ending double play from David Peralta, but Pete Alonso’s throw to second was high. While Francisco Lindor managed to catch the ball and get the out at second, the Mets couldn’t turn two and Muncy scored from third base.

Then, in the bottom of the eighth inning, the Mets had runners on the corners with nobody out. But pinch-hitter Mark Canha popped out on the first pitch he saw and Baty struck out on three pitches. That left it up to Luis Guillorme, who struck out, stranding the runners. As the Mets headed into the dugout, they were greeted by a chorus of boos from the fans at Citi Field.

It was another frustrating night in a season that’s seen a lot of them.

[Photo Credit: Fox]

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