The Angels were up 2-1 on the Dodgers entering the bottom of the 9th Sunday and looking for the series sweep. Closer Jordan Walden walked the first two batters then Jamey Carroll sacrifice bunted, putting runners on second and third with nobody out. The next batter was Aaron Miles who hit a fly ball to center, leading to this play at the plate after pinch runner Dee Gordon tagged up:
Gordon beat the throw home, but catcher Jeff Mathis had the plate well blocked. Gordon was called safe even though it appeared Mathis’ glove touched him before he touched the plate. You can’t make a definitive determination based on the image above, but it appears as if Gordon was out. Instead of the Angels remaining up 2-1 with a man on second and one out, the game was tied with nobody out. Tony Gwynn Jr. followed with a single to right that drove in the winning run, giving the Dodgers a walk-off victory.
This seemed to be a case of the umpire making up his mind before the play was completed. Gordon easily beat the throw, but the umpire must have underestimated how much Mathis blocked the plate. A closer look made it seem like Gordon was out. The Dodgers could have won the game, but it shouldn’t have ended as early as it did.
Here’s a video of the play in case you missed it:
