Todd Frazier fell for the most obvious hidden ball trick and got tagged out
Whoops!
It’s okay, Todd Frazier. This could have happened to anyone! Or, anyone who was staring clear in the other direction instead of looking at what the opposing second baseman was doing with the ball.
On Friday night against the Blue Jays, Frazier made it to second base. But he didn’t stay there for long. Ryan Goins, manning the base, made a faux-throw back to the pitcher to “end the play,” after which Frazier paused before stepping off the plate.
Bad move, buddy.
Goins actually kept the ball in his glove and tagged Frazier’s leg as soon as he was off the bag. Frazier never looked to the mound to see if the pitcher had the ball, and was out before he even realized what was happening. You can’t trust your peripheral vision like that!
You can see the full sequence here.
Goins did a great job selling the trick too — with the over-emphasized throw and a glance over his shoulder to make sure Frazier wasn’t looking. That he followed it with an excited look toward the umpire and a skip toward the dugout really makes the whole thing sing.
Don’t feel bad, Todd. It could happen to the best of players. That doesn’t make it any less hilarious when players actually fall for the trick though. Whoops!
