Angel Pagan can’t squeeze crucial homer, punishes his glove

It’s been said that a good craftsmen never blame his tools — but that good craftsmen probably hasn’t had the same moment of disappointment that San Francisco Giants outfielder Angel Pagan had Monday night.

[Join a Yahoo Daily Fantasy Baseball contest now]

In the fifth inning of a 0-0 game, Pagan bolted to the left-field corner and leapt toward the wall, perfectly positioning himself to a rob a homer off the bat of Erik Kratz of the Pittsburgh Pirates. Pagan did everything right. Great jump. Great timing. Great reach. He had the ball in his glove and when he returned to the ground … he didn’t.

In those split seconds between the ball hitting his glove and him coming back to the ground, Pagan lost it. When he realized what happened, he raged. The victim? His poor glove. Then he stood there stewing about it afterward. 

To make matters worse, this wasn’t quickly forgotten in the next couple innings. In fact, by the end of the game, Pagan was probably even angrier with himself. The Giants lost 1-0, the only run in the game being the ball he couldn’t squeeze long enough.

The Giants wasted another great start from Madison Bumgarner, who pitched a complete game and allowed five hits while striking out eight. There’s a big “What if?” lingering with Pagan’s non-catch. But, of course, if the Giants had mustered just two measly runs against the Pirates and starter Jeff Locke, this one wouldn’t have stung so much. 

More MLB coverage from Yahoo Sports:

– – – – – – –

Mike Oz is the editor of Big League Stew on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at [email protected] or follow him on Twitter! Follow @MikeOz