Seattle Mariners outfielder Dustin Ackley is hardly one of the best defensive players in baseball, but he made one of the best defensive plays of the year on Monday night when he robbed Travis d’Arnaud of a sure home run.
With the Mariners leading the New York Mets 4-1 in the sixth inning, d’Arnaud hit a shot to left field that looked like a home run right off the bat. The ball hung in the air for a while and Ackley was able to time his jump perfectly to bring it back over the wall. Oftentimes we will say a player robbed a homer when we aren’t certain that the ball would have actually cleared the wall, but there is no question Ackley saved a run.
