There are beautiful plays in baseball every day. But, when your team is 17 games out of first and you still play like it’s Game 7 of the World Series, you get extra credit from me.
Heck, you get your own blog post.
Watch it here.
It’s a beautiful airborne moment for San Francisco Giants Shortstop Brandon Crawford. And, the Giants win. Enjoy!
The Baseball Bloggess 
I feel blessed to have seen Ozzie Smith play defense in my lifetime. Great plays like this always remind me of him. While I will listen to most arguments about baseball with an open mind, the “who was the best defensive shortstop ever” arguments that don’t end with Ozzie fall on deaf ears to me.
I saw Ozzie play at Spring Training one year — first game of spring training and he gave it his all. He didn’t have to, but it was so abundantly clear that he felt he owed it to the fans who came out. They were playing the Orioles that day, so I got to see Ozzie and Cal Ripken share the field! While I think that Cal was one of the greatest players ever, I have to agree with you that Ozzie was the best defensive shortstop.
am I allowed to “like” a post of yours where the Giants are prominently featured? haha
:)
Your Dodgers are unstoppable! (And, fun to watch, too …)
Take nothing away from plays with the glove, but that double play by Reddick and Donaldson was a beauty. Catches are one thing, but some of the most breathtaking plays are throws from the outfield, especially on plays at home (though I’d rather forget what happened to Buster Posey). In an ISC championship game, I saw a runner thrown out at home from right field… that play was worth the price of the admission ticket alone. I will concede seeing Ken Griffey Jr. and Bo Jackson run up the wall (at the former Memorial Stadium in Baltimore, no less, are remarkable to see again and again.
Thanks, Jim! There’s nothing like a pure and beautiful defensive play — a mix of being in the right place at the right time, acting out of strength and instinct, and, on occasion, defying gravity! That’s not to take away from a well-timed 3-run homer, of course, but a defensive gem (infield or outfield variety) can just take my breath away!