Baltimore Orioles shortstop JJ Hardy cannot catch a break when his team hosts the Los Angeles Angels. No matter who is playing center field for LA, Hardy can’t seem to put enough power behind the ball to get it over the fence. When you face outfielders with the defensive ability of Peter Bourjos and Mike Trout, that can happen.
During the first inning of his team’s 3-2 win over the Angels on Tuesday, Hardy smoked a ball to center field that looked like it had enough to leave the yard. Instead, Bourjos timed his jump perfectly and reached completely over the fence to pull the ball back in.
The play was amazing, but the situation was even more mind-boggling. Almost exactly a year ago, on June 28, Trout was playing center field in Baltimore when he took a home run away from Hardy. To make the coincidence even more incredible, that play also took place in the bottom of the first inning.
Moral of the story: hit the ball to right field. Josh Hamilton is a decent fielder, but Hardy clearly doesn’t have a chance against Bourjos or Trout.
