Davidson infielders collide on pop fly to give Texas A&M 2 runs

Davidson, your new favorite college baseball team, is currently locked in a daunting super regional tilt with Texas A&M in College Station, and they dropped Friday night’s marathon opener, 7-6, after 15 innings.

The Wildcats carried an impressive 6-2 lead into the top of the eighth, and all was in order until starter Evan Roberts’ wheels fell off, giving up five runs with one out. That brought in Austin Leonard, who lasted not even an out and gave up another run, and he was then followed by Allen Barry.

Then, the worst possible outcome on a routine infield popup happened.

By rights, Davidson shortstop Max Bazin should probably have caught this ball. Third baseman Eric Jones has no business charging in like this, and second baseman Alex Acosta has second claiming rights to it. Pitcher Barry should just get out of the way.

But none of that happened. Jones and Acosta collide hard, with Acosta taking Jones’ left elbow directly in the face. It’s impossible to know whether Acosta thought he had actually caught the thing before dropping it, or whether he was so stunned that he just went and dropped the ball. Either way, this is the low point of what was already an atrocious eighth inning of defense for the Wildcats.

The play ended with two more Aggies crossing, and they took a 9-6 lead into the bottom of the eighth. A&M leads the best of three series, 1-0, so this is a win or go home scenario for Davidson.