Angels Pull Off Rare ‘Hidden Ball Trick’ On Yankees, Pay For It Later
In a move not often seen at the Major League level, the Los Angeles Angels used the so-called hidden ball trick during a game against the New York Yankees on Wednesday night.
And it worked:
🚨 HIDDEN BALL TRICK 🚨 pic.twitter.com/L6Mqey2HIy
— MLB (@MLB) April 25, 2019
The hidden ball trick, as the name implies, is when one player pretends to have the ball while another sneaks up on a runner to tag him. In this case, Angels outfielder Mike Trout caught a ball hit by New York’s Brett Gardner, then threw it in to prevent the Yankees’ baserunners from tagging up.
Angels second baseman Tommy La Stella faked catching the throw, and New York’s Tyler Wade, who was standing on second, fell for it. Third baseman Andrelton Simmons ― who really did have the ball ― then tagged Wade from behind when he briefly took his foot off the base:
And can you believe this: After Trout threw the ball in, Simmons pulled a hidden ball trick on Wade, and it worked. Replay shows Wade was off the bag when tagged by Simmons. Incredible. #Yankees pic.twitter.com/eKNPAOOwpu
— Tom Hanslin (@TomHanslin) April 25, 2019
Wade wasn’t the only one asleep on the bases. The umpires missed it, too, and the play had to be reviewed before they called the runner out.
“I gotta be smarter than that,” Wade said after the game.
He got his revenge two innings later, when he stole second base and scored the go-ahead run to break a 5-5 tie in the 9th inning. That ultimately made the difference, as the Yankees won 6-5.
People on Twitter were divided over the use of the hidden ball trick:
If #Yankees end up losing this game, that’s tough. If you need replay for a “hidden ball trick” to work, then it just should be a “safe” call. That’s what I honestly think. That’s not what replay really is for. That’s now why it exists.
That’s my TEDTalk.— Max Wildstein (@MaxWildstein) April 25, 2019
La Stella sold this hard with the glove slap! https://t.co/BOWh351whB
— The Playmaker (@Parker_008) April 25, 2019
It was for Wade getting tagged out on a hidden ball trick. I guess a fittingly weird way to end this weird comeback.
— Pinstripe Alley (@pinstripealley) April 25, 2019
Simmons of the Angels pulled off a hidden ball trick that was good enough to make me proud.
— Jake Beckley (@JakeBeckleyHOF) April 25, 2019
Althought the hidden ball trick was clever in minor ball, when a player is merely shifting his position on a base like this, and gets called out, it's ridiculous! Especially considering the margin for error on balls and strikes is atrocious from game to game.
— LifeofRyan • I AM 🇨🇦 (@LifeofRyan_) April 25, 2019
Side note gotta love the #Angels for pulling the hidden ball trick, so #classic
— Slaad N. Veider (@_cokeee) April 25, 2019
Dear @MLB, please immediately ban replay reviews of the hidden ball trick like we just saw in the #Yankees-#Angels game. And end all reviews involving cleats being off bases for a split-second. @MLBReplays wasn’t designed for this petty nonsense
— Tom Sileo (@TSileo) April 25, 2019
This trick is always great. Yankee fans are so salty about it which makes it even better
— Vladimir (@VladimirWWE96) April 25, 2019
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This article originally appeared on HuffPost.