Monday’s matchup between the Tampa Bay Rays and the Houston Astros featured a contender for catch of the year from star shortstop Wander Franco.
The play happened in the top of the fifth inning with Astros catcher Martin Maldonado at the plate.
Maldonado hit a ball into foul territory in left field. It didn’t look like Franco had any business being anywhere near the play, but he somehow tracked the ball all the way into foul territory in deep left field.
The star shortstop tracked the ball beautifully and made a miraculous play, catching it with his bare hand to record the out.
It is certainly a jaw-dropping play, and many around the MLB world offered their take on the wild catch.
Franco even getting to this ball is unbelievable, and to make the play without the glove is just absurd.
This unbelievable play was just the cherry on top of a truly remarkable game for Franco. He had it going with the bat as well all night long, recording four hits on the day while at the plate.
The Rays have had about as good of a start to the season as they could have hoped for. They came into Monday’s game with a 19-3 record on the year.
Wander Franco has been a huge part of that success, hitting .289 on the year with four home runs.
If he can keep up this level of play both offensively and defensively, he could certainly earn himself his first All-Star game appearance. More importantly, the Rays could be a real contender to potentially come out of the American League and contend for a World Series title.
[The Comeback on Twitter] Photo Credit: Bally Sports
About Reice Shipley
Reice Shipley is a staff writer for Comeback Media that graduated from Ithaca College with a degree in Sports Media. He previously worked at Barrett Sports Media and is a fan of all things Syracuse sports.