Game ends with fastball off umpire's face, a breakdown
What Happened
In a tightly contested extra-innings matchup between the Chicago White Sox and the Detroit Tigers, the game reaches a dramatic climax in the bottom of the 10th inning. With the score locked at 1-1, the White Sox are looking to push across the winning run from third base. Chicago's Leury García steps up to the plate and lays down a sacrifice bunt, moving the runner over to third. This prompts the Tigers to employ an unconventional defensive alignment, with five infielders and just three outfielders. Their strategy is clear: prevent the White Sox from getting the winning run home via a sacrifice fly. The next batter, Gavin Sheets, is intentionally walked, loading the bases for Andrew Vaughn. On the first pitch, Vaughn is hit by a sinker, forcing in the winning run and sparking a White Sox celebration. However, the festivities are short-lived, as the final batter, Tim Anderson, steps in. Anderson faces a dizzying sequence of events, as the Tigers' catcher and pitcher cross signals on the pitch call. The result is a wild pitch that slams directly into the face of the home plate umpire, knocking him to the ground. The umpire, clearly in distress, attempts to regain his bearings, his head swiveling as he searches for the ball. Anderson and the catcher exchange a concerned glance, unsure of the umpire's condition. As the umpire slowly makes his way off the field, the White Sox players proceed with a muted celebration, mindful of the unsettling situation. "I think I'm okay," the umpire manages to say, though his unsteady gait suggests otherwise. The players gather around him, offering support and concern, as the game ends in an unusual and unfortunate manner. White Sox manager Tony La Russa expresses relief that the umpire appears to be alright, while Detroit skipper A.J. Hinch acknowledges the strange circumstances that led to the game-deciding play. "It's a crazy way to end a game, but we'll take it," says Chicago's Tim Anderson, summing up the mixed emotions of a victory tempered by concern for the injured official.
Full Transcript
Click timestamps to jump to that momentwe got a 1-1 game in the bottom of the
10th inning between the White Sox and
the Tigers this breakdown is brought to
you by DraftKings and they are gonna try
and move the runner over very simple I'm
gonna bunt this dude to Third Base he's
the winning run let's move him because
you know Manfred man Extra Innings is
basically sack bunt Sac fly competition
these guys are clapping they love it now
look what they do you can't shift
anymore you can't move infielders around
but you can bring an outfielder in so
they have an outfielder playing the
infield one two three four five
infielders because if he hits it in the
air it's probably a sack fly and they
win anyway but if he hits it on the
ground let's make sure we turn it into
and out so this batter you know just
don't hit it right at that wall of
players and he does
so now there's two outs they
intentionally walk sheets so it's first
and third that brings up the next batter
burger and they're gonna go after him oh
they went right after him they hit
him in the arm with a sinker it's coming
it's coming it's coming it's coming it
is off your arm so that stinks and it
loads the bases the intentional walk the
hit by pitch which then brings up Tim
Anderson he all he's got to do
is nothing apparently because watch this
the catcher calls for a breaking ball
the pitcher thinks he called for a
fastball and cross up right in the
umpire's face and that is how the White
Sox win the game now if it didn't hit
the Umpire in the face it just would
have been a past ball and it still would
have been bad but as a total cross-up
the catcher is expecting a different
pitch so he's waiting for this ball to
break and he just gets right by him into
the um's face I do like that the um goes
down hard I mean 96 mile per hour pitch
to the face if that happened to any of
us
we tell our grandkids about it and this
is just kind of a regular occurrence but
look at the umps head on a swivel he's
staying with the game where's the ball I
got to make the call he's looking around
and then Anderson and the catcher
are both like whatever game's over are
you okay dude uh you okay Anderson's
like you you all good and I'm just like
uh help me up help me up okay yeah
I think I'm okay Anderson they're like
holding hands a little bit he's like I
think I'm okay no probably not
probably not an awkward oh
awkward celebration because you don't
want to like go crazy when this guy
you know concussion protocol is he okay
is he seeing Stars he's dizzy now he's
walking off on his own he's like just
get me out of here let me go sit down
and whoa did not see it coming teeth
kind of rat a whole face jerks oh that's
nuts this woman she likes it she's
clapping and then bam and then oh he's
down
he's down and the runner has to run the
pitcher has to get there
just an unfortunate situation
not for the White Sox though they do
celebrate they they do look there's a
little bit of a water dowsing on the
right side there there was a bubble gum
pour you can see the bubble gum on the
ground no footage of that but I wish we
had it because that had to be pretty
awkward uh but yeah that's a hell of a
stupid way to win an extra innings what
was it ghost Runner sack bunt ground out
intentional walk hit by pitch wild pitch
that's brutal but this guy takes it
he'll he'll take it he likes it and
everyone just kind of walking in like
what is that and then they're talking
like I couldn't hear you or because you
got Pitch comments here he's like I
thought you said this in my ear and he's
like nah whatever dude I didn't say that
but hopefully I'm okay brought to you by
DraftKings thank you to DraftKings for
sponsoring the breakdowns as you always
do I appreciate that I appreciate all of
you guys for watching and hopefully this
um's okay I'm sure we've had an update
uh but yeah what a uh terrible last
inning kind of by both teams