Miscue’s a slow burn
Amed’s lax throw costs Jake
DURING his first month in the majors, Amed Rosario has shown considerable promise in the field, the type of exceptional defensive ability that will one day make him an elite shortstop in this league. But sometimes rookies make rookie mistakes. That’s part of the process in developing young players — a process the Mets have committed to down the stretch of this season.
So the organization lives with the blunders and hopes they serve as rungs in the ladder of progress.
Rosario — for all intents and purposes — cost the Mets a game Sunday at Citi Field, a 6-4 loss to the Marlins in the series finale. His lethargic play on a routine ground ball in the seventh inning allowed speedster Dee Gordon to reach base safely and brought up MLB’s home run leader, Giancarlo Stanton, with two runners aboard.
Stanton then smashed the eventual game-winning three-run homer over the 370 sign in left-center field.
Miami shortstop Miguel Rojas led off the seventh with a single before advancing to second on a sacrifice bunt. Gordon, the Marlins’ leadoff hitter, then came to the plate.
Gordon fell behind 1-2 before flicking a grounder directly at Rosario to the left of second base. Rosario fielded, stepped toward first and patted the ball into his glove before he realized he was taking too much time. He couldn’t afford to double clutch, not against Gordon, one of the fastest players in MLB.
Rosario tried to compensate. He rushed to throw and fired an 85-mph laser across the diamond. But Gordon beat it with ease. Rojas advanced to third.
“I knew that he could run well,” GETTY Rosario said through a translator after the game. “But I got a little overconfident.”
Mets righthander Jacob deGrom was on the mound and displayed his frustration with the misplay, throwing his hands into the air. He regretted the reaction in the clubhouse after the loss.
Rosario said he didn’t “really” see deGrom’s minor outburst.
“Everybody’s trying,” deGrom said. “When Rosario didn’t make that play, I put my hands up. I probably shouldn’t have done that. I’ll have to talk to him. That’s my bad. I can’t show emotion out there like that, especially when it has to do with your other players, when you know they’re out there trying to play defense behind you. So that one is on me.”
It was a commendable statement from deGrom. But there’s also no denying Rosario’s mistake changed the complexion of the next at-bat. Had Rosario thrown out Gordon, first base would have been open with a runner on third and two outs. DeGrom could have pitched more carefully to Stanton, whom the Mets walked five times in the first two games of the series.
Instead, deGrom was forced to challenge Stanton. On the first pitch, deGrom tried to pump a two-seam fastball inside to jam the Marlins slugger. But it was up in the zone and caught too much of the plate.
“He didn’t get it that good, just happened to get enough,” deGrom said. “He’s strong enough to get it out of the park. So got to tip my cap to him there.”
Terry Collins said after the game that Rosario has a “habit” of patting his glove before throwing to first base. In reality, it’s poor fundamentals. Infielders are taught from a young age to avoid double clutching — because of the exact situation Rosario encountered Sunday.
“Dee Gordon’s faster than a lot of guys in baseball,” Collins said. “He learned a lesson. I’m sure it won’t happen again.”
Luckily for the Mets, these games don’t matter. They’re out of the playoff race, and the only important thing over these final 40 games is grooming their young position players.
In the long run, mishaps will only benefit this delicate and arduous development process.
“I’m learning from all these small mistakes,” Rosario said.