The Texas Rangers lost in heartbreaking fashion on Monday thanks to a controversial late slide call at second base.
The Rangers were trailing the Colorado Rockies 6-4 in the tenth inning of Monday’s home opener, but had the tying runs on base with one out. Adolis Garcia hit a ground ball to third, resulting in a force play at second. On the relay attempt, however, Rockies shortstop Brendan Rodgers’ throw got past first baseman C.J. Cron, seemingly extending the game and putting two runners in scoring position.
This was the end of the Rangers game. No clue how but it happened https://t.co/vg1y7KGXdu
— MLB Clutch Moments And Walk Offs (@MLBWalk_Offs) April 12, 2022
After a review, Rangers catcher Mitch Garver was ruled to have illegally slid into second base. That meant the runner at first was out due to interference, and the game was over.
The Rockies and Rangers game ended today on an illegal slide at 2nd base after Review. @Starting9 https://t.co/pynYOUVwk7
— Barstool Sports (@barstoolsports) April 12, 2022
This is a judgement call, but the bizarre part is this was not originally ruled as interference. That call was made after video replay. Rarely are judgement calls like that overturned, and the inclination is usually to stick with the call on the field.
Presumably, the argument would be that Garver slid into second later than he needed to. That logic is iffy at best, and few would bat an eye at how he slid. One can certainly sympathize with the Rangers here, and it’s not the first time we’ve seen this happen either.
