White Sox win on a nifty slide by José Abreu, a breakdown
What Happened
José Abreu, the star first baseman for the Chicago White Sox, steps up to the plate in the bottom of the ninth inning with the game tied 3-3 against the Kansas City Royals. The tension is high as the White Sox look to take the lead and secure the victory late in the game. Tim Anderson, the White Sox's leadoff hitter, starts the inning with a ground-rule double, putting the tying run in scoring position. Adam Eaton follows with a sacrifice bunt, moving Anderson to third base and setting the stage for Abreu's heroics. Abreu, the reigning American League MVP, takes a pair of strikes, putting him in an 0-2 count. But he battles back, fouling off a few pitches to stay alive. On the next offering, Abreu is hit by a pitch, loading the bases with one out. The crowd at Guaranteed Rate Field erupts, sensing a potential game-winning moment for their team. Next up is Yermín Mercedes, the White Sox's breakout star this season. Mercedes swings at a nasty curveball, missing it completely, but the ball gets past the Royals' catcher, allowing Anderson to score the go-ahead run. The White Sox dugout erupts in celebration, but the umpires quickly signal that they will review the play at the plate. As the replay is reviewed, the tension builds. The camera angles show that Abreu executed a nifty, head-first slide to avoid the tag and score the winning run. After a brief deliberation, the umpires rule Abreu safe and the White Sox secure the 4-3 victory. Abreu's jubilant celebration captures the moment perfectly. He jumps up, spins around and embraces his teammates, including the 77-year-old manager Tony La Russa, who offers a "gingerly hug" to his star player. The victory is a testament to the White Sox's resilience and Abreu's clutch performance, keeping them in the hunt for the American League Central division title.
Full Transcript
Click timestamps to jump to that momentbottom nine royals are up three to two
on the white sox there's no outs and
anderson opens up the inning with the
ground rule double the track
over the wall he's on second base and
the fun begins come on
[Music]
yeah let's go next batter adam eaton
gonna bunt that no it's a ball
gonna punt this oh oh
in the face scary buns it foul
realizes that was scary jumps to his
back
kicks his feet over his head lets people
know he's gritty
and grindy next pitch gets it down does
his job he's out at first
but the tying run is now in scoring
position which
is pretty huge considering mankato is
just going to hit him in
and easy peasy lemon squeezy they're
excited mvp
mvp a braves up
is the mvp takes strike one he swings at
strike two down
oh two that's not good he's got to
battle back sees that one real well
sees that one well it was high two and
two
fouls that one back staying alive oh
takes the curveball
to the arm charge the mount charge the
mount
you stupid next batter
yerman story of the season so far
he's one in one oh my god that was a
nasty curveball he's like i'm just gonna
swing that pitch is at his eyes he
floats it into right
merrifield's got it monkat is rounding
third to play at the plate
out that a boy had a boy davis loves it
mankata doesn't he's like damn that
sucks what a play
nice gun by merrifield out but
a brayer was following the play so he's
on third
and that's a big swing and a miss that
ball's in the dirt jose abreu
fastest guy in the world comes home
nifty slide
safe so they're celebrating but then
they're like wait hold up they're
probably gonna challenge this this guy's
like you're saying i shouldn't have even
called you because
obviously challenge it because if it's
correct the game's over oh okay we'll
challenge then and then here you go you
got this view
they showed a ton of views i just boiled
it down to the two that i thought
mattered most
this view shows that they have contact
right there it shows
he missed the leg but right here
obviously a blind spot maybe he's
touching his jersey maybe he's not
the next view and they showed this one
super late
but this is the angle we needed to see
to see if he touches his jersey
and right there is farther away you can
tell from the other angle and then there
is daylight between them
right there and then he doesn't touch
his arm there i think they got this call
correct
uh i don't think it's 100 positive but
they say
safe and abreu goes nuts yeah
[Music]
he's still going nuts this is like a
movie scene type celebration jumping up
and doing 180 spins
gotta love it larussa comes up and he
goes to give him a high five and lures
is like i'm
old let's do a hug instead he says okay
i'll give you a gingerly hug old man
and then these guys are bumping hips and
these guys are really bumping hips and
he knocked that dude away