Mandatory Credit: Kyle Ross-USA TODAY Sports
Seth Lugo set, zeroed in on James McCann‘s mitt and focused in for the pitch. The Mets were riding the high of having tied the game with Dominic Smith‘s homer in the top of the ninth, but they found themselves in hot water. The Braves had loaded the bases with two outs, thanks in part to Lugo’s own doing with a throwing error.
To make matters tougher, at the plate was Freddie Freeman, who earlier Thursday night was named the starting first baseman on the NL All-Star team.
Lugo turned to his signature curveball, and Freeman hit one off the mound that bounced over to third baseman Luis Guillorme. Guillorme charged in and turned in his best effort to throw Freeman out at first, but he couldn’t make the play in time. The Mets walked off the field with their heads down as the Braves celebrated and mobbed Freeman, as the Amazins’ wasted a 14-strikeout performance from Jacob deGrom.
After the game, many fans and journalists turned to Twitter to analyze the play. The bases were loaded, so there was a force at every base. Could Guillorme have simply stepped on third and ended the game? Many fans were irate with Guillorme for not making what they believed to be the simple play.
However, the play wasn’t nearly as easy as it may have looked to the average fan on TV. Guillorme was charging in, and had his sights set on throwing the ball to first from the moment it bounced off the mound. While he was physically closer to the bag than the runner, that play was going on behind him. All of Guillorme’s momentum was moving forward, so even if he was aware of the runner (which he wasn’t), it still would have been an extremely tough play physically with the direction his body was heading.
For Guillorme to completely shift and readjust his momentum in that split second would have been nearly impossible. Sure, he was closer to the bag than the runner, but when you account for the time it would take for him to stop, pivot and turn toward the bag, it would have been a lot closer. Plus, in the heat of the moment, there isn’t a lot of time to make a decision, and Guillorme was already set on going to first.
In the video, you can see Lugo yelling at Guillorme to step on third, as Lugo had a much clearer view of the situation than Guillorme did. But Guillorme, in a loud stadium of fans and while committing 100% of his attention to the play, simply wasn’t able to receive and process the information in time, and that’s something that he just didn’t have any control over in the moment.
“It’s tough,” Lugo said. “I was trying to yell at him but it was pretty loud out there. I understand it’s tough to hear. It’s tough to be able to make that reaction in real time. That’s just the way it goes.”
Lugo hit the nail on the head; while it’s understandably disappointing for the Mets that Guillorme wasn’t able to make that play, there just wasn’t enough time to react and run to the bag, and with the noise, Guillorme might not have even been able to hear Lugo.
Even if you still believe that Guillorme could have and/or should have made that play, it’s important to keep some perspective. While Guillorme’s defensive metrics aren’t eye-popping, he’s been one of the Mets’ slickest and most versatile infielders. It would be silly to penalize him too much for one play. And on the hitting side, Guillorme has been valuable to this team, posting a .407 OBP in 26 games.
And even with the tough loss, the Mets still sit in first place in the NL East by two games. While there are understandable concerns about the recent lack of offense, they recently added Michael Conforto and Jeff McNeil back into the lineup, with Brandon Nimmo and J.D. Davis on the way. It’s amazing that they were able to stay afloat with the amount of injuries they’ve had to endure, and despite the recent offensive struggles, there is hope on the horizon.
So keep that perspective and faith, Mets fans. It’s a long season, and it hasn’t been the smoothest of ones for the Mets, but looking at the big picture, there’s a lot to be excited about.
