I could start this by complaining about the Mets, their great pitchers, and the franchise’s complete lack of no-hitters. I guess I sort of did, so I will stop and transition to the microcosm in regards to this site that I have been waiting for.
Consider the cases of the San Francisco Giants’ super-talented pitcher Jonathan Sanchez, super-sub infielder Juan Uribe, and the former’s no-hitter of 10 July 2009. Sanchez pitched to 28 batters, which is one over the minimum any pitcher must face to win a complete nine-inning game. The only San Diego Padre to reach was Chase Headley on Uribe’s error T8.
Headley is quoted on MLB.com as saying, “It’s one of those plays at third base that’s a tough play to make, an in-between hop with a lot of topspin on it. It’s what I call the common third-base error. You get a couple of those a year.”
Watch the video. You can see the spin and the crazy kick the ball takes when it hits the infield dirt.
It’s a classic in-between hop. Uribe recognizes it. He does everything in his power to protect his teammate’s sprint toward history by blocking the ball, keeping it in front of him, and trying to pick it up and throw.
What happens next is the microcosm. Per the video, Uribe does not get down on himself, Sanchez immediately signals to the shortstop that he will throw to him on a comebacker for the double play, and the announcer mentions the young catcher heading out to the mound so the 30,000+ in the stadium and catch their collective breath and complete the task at hand.
Five more up and five more down after that and the no-no is complete.
We have all seen our share of in-between hops in last year or so — what I like to call real adversity. Hopefully the hops didn’t have as much topspin on them as if they were hit from a pitch by Jonathan Sanchez. Or if so, you had a teammate like Juan Uribe to back you up.
You found the classic case to illustrate your blog name, and I think your take on Uribe’s error and Sanchez’s response is correct. When that kind of thing happens, all you can do as a pro is to play through it. The amateurs, like Sanchez’s relatives in the stands, get to let out emotionally. So when do I see you throw up your hands over the economic mess. My favorite benchmark for recovery is if — big if — fewer than 1 million people lose their jobs in what’s left of this year. Cheers — GARY