Pittsburgh Pirates outfielder Bae Ji-hwan was an insane presence on the infield and outfield, but he couldn’t prevent his team from losing.
Bae started at first base and second base against the Milwaukee Brewers in the 2023 Major League Baseball World Series at American Family Ballpark in Milwaukee, U.S., on Sept. 19 (KST). He made a spectacular play to end a three-run rally late in the game. Pittsburgh lost the game 2-5.
Bae has been all over the place this season, moving between second base, shortstop, and center field.
On this day, Bae moved to center field to play defense in the bottom of the seventh inning. The move paid off in the eighth inning.
With a 2-1 lead, Pittsburgh faced a bases-loaded situation in the bottom of the eighth.
David Bednar was brought in to relieve Raimel Tapia. A fastball splitter was hit for a wild pitch. Tapia didn’t miss and swung at it. He swung and missed, and the ball flew to right-center field.
Bednar jumped up and stared at the pitch as he realized it was a home run. The play-by-play announcer exclaimed that Bae was still going backwards.메이저사이트
AFP Yonhap
USA TodayYonhap
As Bae ran toward the fence, he turned his head to see where the pitch was. As he approached the walking track, Bae took off. The pitch that was supposed to hit the fence was sucked into his glove. Bae collided with the fence and went down, but he immediately threw the ball to the right fielder to prevent another run from advancing.
Tapia couldn’t hide his disbelief at the catch. He smiled bitterly and took off his helmet. It would have been at least a three-run double. Only the third baseman tagged up and crossed home plate. Bae’s defense kept the three runs to one.
But Bednar was hit by a pitch to Luis Urias, the next batter. This was the moment when Bae’s lake effect was lost. Both runners reached base.
Bae finished the game 3-for-3 with a walk, a strikeout, and a run scored. His season batting average dropped from 0.269 to 0.265. His on-base percentage dropped slightly from 0.328 to 0.327.
Meanwhile, Pittsburgh swept a midweek three-game series with the Chicago Cubs and then dropped a weekend three-game series to Milwaukee.