Arizona Diamondbacks

There isn’t a more infuriating way to get called out than this

The Diamondbacks utility player Deven Marrero was robbed of a home run Sunday night when Marrero passed the runner on 1st while hustling out of the box.

As you can see in the video below, catcher Alex Avila runs back to 1st base, unsure if Marrero had cleared the wall on his hit. Marrero, who was also not 100% certain he had hit a home run, rounded first base and passed Avila on the pass paths, which is an automatic out.

This is a very dumb way to get called out, but technically, is the correct call. The good news is that it didn’t cost the Diamondbacks the game, and Marrero did get credited with a two-run single, there’s a lot wrong with this play.

For starters, this rule was never meant to be applied in this particular situation. Hard to be upset with Marrero who ran hard out of the box, like he was supposed too, paying attention to the flight of the ball and less about the runner on first.

Avila, who is a terrible runner, wanted to make sure he didn’t get caught making the third out of the inning on a dumb base running mistake (the irony is thick).

Punishing Marrero on this was brutal, but the other aspect of this situation is that the players should have known better. With one out on a ball that’s hit to the left-center gap, Avila should have been at least half between 1st and 2nd base.

On top of this, the 1st base coach has to navigate that play better. Simple communication on that play and the Diamondbacks come away with three runs and Marrero has his first homer of the season.

Instead, it’s a weirdly hilarious situation that includes a rule that might need some revision for the future.

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