The Yankees were losing to the Rangers 4-3 in the bottom of the eighth in Texas on Tuesday, and things could have quickly become worse than that if not for center fielder Brett Gardner. With Yankees reliever Joba Chamberlain on the mound, Rangers shortstop Elvis Andrus -- who has got some wheels on him -- crushed a ball to deep right center that easily would have gone for two, if not three bases.
Brett Gardner is faster than you, in GIF form
And good thing for the Yankees, too, as he helped them win thanks to a great, late catch.
Ronald Martinez
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That’s where Gardner came in, however:
He’s already shifted over for an opposite field shot, and then runs down the fly ball the rest of the way, catching it at the last moment with arm fully outstretched to the point where Gardner’s momentum sends him into a full flip and back up again.
He was a fantastic left fielder, but as you can see here, seriously overqualified for that position. Having him in center might have saved the game, as the Yankees would score two in the top of the ninth against closer Joe Nathan -- had Andrus hit a double or triple here, two runs in the next half-inning might not have been enough to get the job done.
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