Holy cow! Javier Baez dives into stands to make crazy catch
Javier Baez is doing everything he can to carve out a regular role on an incredibly deep Chicago Cubs roster.
He went a long way toward accomplishing that on Friday night in Miami, diving into the stands to make arguably the best defensive play in baseball this season.
Baez measured the foul ball off the bat of Miami’s J.T. Realmuto the whole way, but seemed to be running out of room as he approached the wall about halfway up the third base line. At that point, the 23-year-old risk-taker decided nothing was going to stop him from completing the catch, so he launched him into the air and ultimately into the stands to give himself the best shot.
The effort obviously paid off, as Baez made the play. He also avoided injury, which may have actually been the better news to the injury-riddled Cubs.
Baez’s effort was remarkable, but that’s become the norm for Chicago’s budding young superstar. We’ve seen it several different forms so far. That includes on the bases, where his determination to reach the next base has led to some creative slides. Baez also nearly pulled off a memorable defensive play during Thursday’s game in Miami, only for replay to take it away.
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Needless to say, those types of efforts will make it impossible for Joe Maddon to keep Baez’s name out of the lineup even when the team gets healthier. That means Maddon will have some challenging decisions ahead, but like every other MLB manager, it’s a challenge he’ll definitely welcome.
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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
