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Watch: Outfielder's Brutal Fielding Gaffe Turns an Out into a Home Run

 By Dave Kovaleski  April 24, 2019 at 9:57am
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Seattle Mariners center fielder Mallex Smith did everything right in tracking down a deep fly ball hit by the San Diego Padres’ Austin Hedges on Tuesday — except catch it.

Instead of an out, Smith’s blunder turned into a home run.

It happened in the bottom of the sixth inning at Petco Park. The Padres were leading 4-2 as Hedges stepped up with Ryon Healy on first.

Hedges hit a deep fly ball to the warning track that Smith had a bead on. He timed his jump perfectly and reached for the ball, but it bounced out of the pocket of the glove and bounded over the fence for a two-run homer.

Had it not hit Smith’s glove, it would have not left the ballpark.

It was ruled a home run, not an error, but it’s a catch that Smith put himself in position to snag and should have caught.

“I did everything right,” Smith told the Seattle Times. “I had a good idea of where I was. I’d practiced it earlier today. I knew where the wall was. I timed it well. I saw the ball. I just didn’t complete the play. That’s the next step.”

“It caught me on the palm and just kind of toilet bowled out of there,” he added. “I’m not sure what I can do about that, maybe fix your glove a little bit better. …

“It’s just been the way things have been going for me.”

The Padres eventually won the game 6-3.

Smith is certainly not the first player to give away a home run. The St. Louis Cardinals’ Dexter Fowler did it Sunday against the New York Mets’ Noah Syndergaard.

Related:
'This Has Really Gone Sideways': Nightmarish Scene Erupts in LA After Dodgers Win World Series

Then there is the granddaddy of all flubs by Jose Canseco when he was with the Texas Rangers.

That will never be topped.

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Dave Kovaleski
Contributor, Sports
Dave is a lifelong sports fan who has been writing for The Wildcard since 2017. He has been a writer for more than 20 years for a variety of publications.
Dave has been writing about sports for The Wildcard since 2017. He's been a reporter and editor for over 20 years, covering everything from sports to financial news. In addition to writing for The Wildcard, Dave has covered mutual funds for Pensions and Investments, meetings and conventions, money market funds, personal finance, associations, and he currently covers financial regulations and the energy sector for Macallan Communications. He has won awards for both news and sports reporting.
Location
Massachusetts
Languages Spoken
English
Topics of Expertise
Sports




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