Grandy: Inside-the-parker was actually a home run
Curtis Granderson insisted he wasn’t dogging it. He just saw no reason to chase after a ball that was clearly a home run. Charlie Blackmon’s drive over his head to deep left-center field went over the fence, even if it isn’t being scored that way.
Replays showed the ball going over the orange line, as Granderson clearly saw as he looked up while in front of the fence. It’s why he only haphazardly jogged after the ball and lightly tossed it into the infield as the Rockies’ All-Star sped around the bases for a tworun inside-the-park home run in Colorado’s 13-4 rout of the Mets Sunday afternoon at Citi Field.
“They made a mistake,” a somewhat animated Granderson said after the lopsided loss. “They need to challenge it. It went over the fence. What do you want me to do about it?
“I got the best view in the house. It’s not hard to believe they missed it, but I’m not going to run after a ball I know is over the fence. Whether I run after it, get it, throw it in, they’re going to check the replays, and it’s going to show what all you guys I’m sure saw. It went over the fence.”
The blast, for the time being at least, was Blackmon’s second inside-the-park homer of the season, and the fourth ever at Citi Field. The last player with two inside-the-park homers in one season was Brandon Barnes of the Rockies in 2014.
Blackmon’s team-leading 21st homer of the year, off Mets reliever Chasen Bradford, extended Colorado’s lead to 11-4 in the seventh inning.
“I couldn’t tell right away,” Rockies manager Bud Black said. “We heard right away. When Charlie was crossing home plate, our video guy, Brian Jones, informed us that it was a home run.
“As Gerardo Parra said: ‘He hit two home runs on the same play. That is hard to do.’ ”