Indiana records strike’em out, throw’em out, throw’em out again triple play
They say the double play is a pitcher’s best friend, and the strike’em out, throw’em out double play in particular is a result that tends to send a jolt of energy through the defense while taking the wind out of the offensive team.
During Friday’s NCAA tournament regional game against Radford, the Indiana University baseball team went one better, recording a strike’em out, throw’em out and throw’em again triple play.
1… 2… 3 OUTS! Triple play by Indiana! #RoadToOmaha http://t.co/VHuhSXhZCq
— NCAA Baseball (@NCAACWS) May 29, 2015
Call it whatever you like, it was a crazy play that you won’t see very often.
The sequence took place in the first inning after Radford started the game with consecutive singles off Indiana ace Kyle Hart, and it pretty much set the tone for the entire game. Attempting to take advantage of what could be its best scoring opportunity, Radford put the runner on first, catcher Josh Reavis, in motion on a 3-2 pitch. Unfortunately, batter Patrick Marshall took a called strike three, which left Reavis a sitting duck at second.
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After applying the tag on Reavis, shortstop Nick Ramos spied Shane Johnsonbaugh charging home from third. He threw it home quickly and the triple play was completed as Indiana catcher Brad Hartong chased down Johnsonbaugh and applied his own tag.
If you’re scoring at home, that’s strikeout, 2-6-2. Easy to write, difficult to comprehend. But Radford obviously felt they needed the immediate boost to pull off the win.
They were probably right, too, as Indiana ended up cruising to a 7-1 victory. But we’ll never know what could have been in that inning if not for the now famous 2-6-2 triple play.
BLS H/N: The Sporting News
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Mark Townsend is a writer for Big League Stew on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at [email protected] or follow him on Twitter! Follow @Townie813
