Raul Mondesi Jr. may have set a record for fastest transformation from hero to villain in any sporting event in history on Monday night. With Helena — a Rookie League team in the Brewers organization — trailing 2-0 in the bottom of the 10th against the Missoula Osprey, Mondesi blasted a two-run homer over the left field wall to tie the score at 2-2. The score remained that way for a little over a minute.
As you can see from the video above that Deadspin shared with us, Mondesi failed to touch home plate. Osprey catcher Michael Perez immediately noticed the brain fart and set his pitcher up for the appeal. The home plate umpire, who was looking right at Mondesi’s feet as he hopped over the plate, immediately made the “out” signal and Osprey went on the win 2-1.
“Did he miss home plate? You tell me, because I don’t know, I didn’t see it,” Helena manager Jeff Isom said after the game according to the Independent Record. “On any home run, the umpire has one job, and that’s to watch the plate and make sure the runners touch it. He said he (Mondesi) missed it by eight inches.
“It’s a terrible way to lose a ballgame, but the guys learned a good lesson. From now on, make sure you jump on the plate on a homer.”
You mean the guys relearned a good lesson that we all learn when we’re five years old and hitting off of a tee. From my limited experience on a baseball diamond, home plate feels a bit different from the dirt surrounding it when you step on it. Maybe his adrenaline was surging a bit too much, but I have no idea how Mondesi didn’t at least go back after realizing he didn’t feel the plate under his foot.
