Oakland Athletics rookie starter Luis Medina pulled off one of the strangest plays of the 2023 MLB season Saturday night.
Call it a brain freeze. A lack of situation awareness. A “WTF is he doing?” moment.
The situation unfolded in the second inning against the Washington Nationals. Medina threw a 100 mph fastball to third baseman Ildemaro Vargas and induced a sharp grounder up the middle.
Medina speared the ball and started jogging to first base. So far, so good.
But he kept jogging. And jogging.
Meanwhile, Vargas, running hard all the way down the line, neared the bag. Medina spotted him, and ran the last couple of steps to the base, but Vargas beat him for what officially goes down as an infield single.
To make matters worse, Vargas came around to score what should have been an entirely preventable run.
The rookie entered the day 3-8 with a 5.47 ERA in 16 MLB appearances. No question he’ll look to throw the ball to the first baseman on similar plays in the future.
Here’s hoping Medina doesn’t visit Twitter anytime soon, because the feedback on his mistake was brutal. Many observers saw the boneheaded play as a microcosm of the Athletics’ terrible season.
“A’s pitcher Luis Medina’s mental gaffe against the Nationals perfectly summed up the team’s season,” Sports Illustrated tweeted.
About Arthur Weinstein
Arthur spends his free time traveling around the U.S. to sporting events, state and national parks, and in search of great restaurants off the beaten path.