Here’s something you don’t see very often: a straight steal of home.
Texas Rangers shortstop Elvis Andrus pulled off the rare feat in the seventh inning of Tuesday’s game against the San Diego Padres.
Andrus cleared the bases with a single to make it 7-4 (an error allowed all three to score and Andrus to advance to third). The Padres brought Kevin Quackenbush in to relieve Shawn Kelley, and Andrus promptly took advantage by stealing home:
What makes the steal of home even more impressive is that it was done against a right-handed pitcher who was pitching from the stretch and looking directly at Andrus. But as you can see, Andrus was two-thirds of the way down the line before Quackenbush hurried his pitch. His throw home was also way off the plate, which allowed the infielder to sneak in with a slide.
That was Andrus’ 15th stolen base of the season, and probably the best of his career.
