New York Mets second baseman Daniel Murphy returned to spring training action on Sunday after missing the last week with a minor calf injury. The 28-year-old must have been feeling pretty healthy, because he made one of the best defensive plays you will see all season.
With the game tied 1-1 in the top of the sixth inning, Bryce Harper tried to bunt for a base hit. He placed the ball perfectly between first base and the pitcher’s mound where only Murphy had a play on it, and it looked like Harper was going to beat the throw with ease. Instead, Murphy threw the ball between his legs on the run and got Harper at first.
“It was a really good bunt by Bryce,” Murphy told MLB.com’s Anthony DiComo. “I just felt like it was the only way I could get it over to first from the angle I was going to have to take. I could probably do it another 15 times, and throw all 15 of them in the fourth row of the stands.”
Murphy added that he had only attempted a throw like that before while messing around in practice. I think Bryce Harper’s “WOW” reaction said it all. Between Murphy’s throw and Josh Reddick’s home-run robbing catches last month, we have seem some truly jaw-dropping plays in games that don’t count this year.
