Just when you think baseball can't get any more weird and harder to understand, Game 5 of the American League Division Series between the Texas Rangers and Toronto Blue Jays happens.
In the top of the seventh inning, Blue Jays catcher Russell Martin was attempting to throw the ball back to the pitcher. His throw hit the bat of Rangers outfielder Shin-Soo Choo, which allowed Rougned Odor to score the go-ahead run from third to give Texas a 3-2 lead.
You can see a replay of the crazy play below:
The Blue Jays announced they would play the game under protest following the call.
Chicago Cubs outfielder Dexter Fowler wondered how much credit Choo was going to get for the run:
Further complicating matters was the fact the home plate umpire waved his arms to signal a dead ball. After deliberating, the umpiring crew determined the run would count.
Hardball Talk's Aaron Gleeman argued waving the play dead should've negated anything that followed:
MLB.com's Paul Casella countered the actual outcome would've remained the same whether or not the home plate umpire waved his arms:
TSN's StatsCentre provided the official MLB rule:
Regardless of whether you agreed with the call, nothing would have rid the Blue Jays players and their fans of the sting had they wound up losing 3-2. The Toronto Star's Bruce Arthur echoed that sentiment:
The fans inside Rogers Centre weren't shy about letting their feelings about the call known, per Dave Kaufman of TSN 690 in Montreal:
Huffington Post Sports offered this re-enactment of the fans' reactions:
The situation turned a bit serious, however, after fans in the lower sections of the stadium were inadvertently hit, per Casey Pratt of CSN Bay Area:
For more neutral observers, the play will be appreciated as one of the more confounding moments in playoff history. ESPN's Jayson Stark couldn't think of an odder play ever in the postseason:
Jerry Crasnick of ESPN believes this is a case where MLB's pace-of-play rules backfired, since Choo was required to keep at least one foot in the batter's box:
Len Kasper, the Cubs play-by-play man, offered MLB this helpful piece of advice that would be a major benefit on contentious calls like this:
Luckily for the Blue Jays, Josh Donaldson drove in the tying run on a fielder's choice in the bottom of the seventh, and Jose Bautista followed with a three-run home run to put Toronto ahead, 6-3.
The inning finally concluded after 53 minutes. By the time everything had transpired, the Blue Jays sent four runs across the plate, and the benches cleared twice. It is the lone inning in baseball history that could necessitate its own oral history, countless think pieces and a 30 for 30 documentary.
Maybe Blue Jays fans will be able to look back at all this and laugh.
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