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The first triple play of the MLB 2020 season is in the books.
The Chicago Cubs converted the first triple play of the abbreviated season on Wednesday night when Reds catcher Shogo Akiyama faced Kris Bryant at third base with the bases loaded in the seventh inning. Bryant caught the first out, stepped on third base to double the runner for the second out, then threw to first base to double the runner for the third out.
Here is the work:
The triple play was made possible by a failed call. Replays showed Bryant did not catch the ball in midair. He hit the ground and rebounded first, which of course is not an out. It should have been a double play when Bryant stepped in third for strength, and pitched first for another strength, but that’s it.
“He should have thrown it to second and then he would have thrown it first and then there would have been four outs,” Bryant joked after the game, according to MLB.com’s Jordan Bastian. He added that he was “convinced” that he caught the ball before seeing the replay.
Believe it or not, that play is not reviewable. MLB rules say cheat plays in the outfield are playable but not similar in the box. That is the referee’s call and the referee’s call only. Why? I win The fair or the disgusting can be reviewed only in the garden, it is the decision of the referee in the inner box, and the same applies to cheating. Strange.
Of course, the triple play was largely inconsequential to the game, so the missed call didn’t cost the Reds. They were leading 12-5 at the time and eventually won 12-7 (box score). Third base coach Larry Vanover is off the hook. No harm, no fault.
The triple play is the first in baseball since the Twins converted a triple play against the Braves on August 7. It is the Cubs’ first triple play since May 10, 1997 against the Giants.
