The Dodgers Hit Into A 404-Foot DP Because They Didn’t Know The Rules

William Contreras of the Brewers forces out the Dodgers’ Teoscar Hernández at home plate during the fourth inning of Game 1 of the NLCS. (Photo by John Fisher/Getty Images)

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It is truly amazing that players can get to the very top of a sport – the best of the best – playing on the biggest stage, and yet they don’t know the rules.

A few years ago, multiple members of the San Francisco 49ers admitted that when the Super Bowl was tied at the end of regulation, they didn’t know the overtime rules. No one in the NBA seems to know what constitutes a travel.

So maybe it is not too shocking that in Game 1 of the National League Championship Series, it seemed that the entire Dodgers roster was unaware of when a player can leave the base on a potential sacrifice fly.

According to the official comment to MLB Rule 5.09(a)(1), “Runners may leave their bases the instant the first fielder touches the ball.” They can do this regardless of whether or not the ball is actually caught. (The reason for this is that a fielder could ostensibly juggle a ball all way into the infield without ever actually securing it simply to preclude a runner from being able to tag up.)

Dodgers left fielder Teoscar Hernández, who was on third base after a walk, didn’t know that rule. Will Smith, the Dodgers’ heady catcher who serves as the captain when he is behind the plate, on second base after a single, didn’t seem to know the rule. Tommy Edman, who grew up in the St. Louis Cardinals’ system learning to play baseball “The Cardinal Way,” who was also aboard after a single, either didn’t know the rule or simply deferred to Smith.

The result of all of that ignorance was one of the most unusual, bizarre, unconventional, “grounded into double plays” in the history of the game.

With one out and the bases loaded in the top of the fourth inning of Game 1 of the NLCS, Dodgers third baseman Max Muncy hit a long drive to deep center. Brewers center fielder Sal Frelick drifted back to the warning track, and leaped to make the catch. The ball bounced out of his glove and caromed off the top of the wall and then back into his glove. Frelick collected himself, threw to shortstop Joey Ortiz, who spun and threw to catcher William Contreras. The catcher, acting like his brother, who plays first base for the Cardinals, stretched to catch the ball a half a step ahead of Hernández, resulting in a 404-foot force out at the plate. Contreras, implicitly understanding the rules and the situation, then calmly walked to third base to record the force out on Smith, ending the threat and the inning. The Dodgers appealed the play for no reason other than they didn’t seem to comprehend what just happened. After a short review, the umpires confirmed what they called perfectly on the field in real time.

Ironically, Frelick, who commenced this chaos, clearly didn’t know the rule either, as he could be seen on the broadcast asking left fielder Isaac Collins: “What the f*@k just happened?”

From the top angle camera view, you can see Smith was halfway to third while the ball was in the air (the correct positioning), but then quickly retreated to second base after Frelick’s bobble, while emphatically waving Edman back to first. He was wrong on both accounts. Hernández, who was tagging on the play but then frozen on the base, didn’t leave until third base coach Dino Ebel implored him to run home. He ultimately did so, just too late.

According to ESPN Research, Muncy’s double-play ball would have been a home run in nine ballparks, including Dodger Stadium. Per MLB.com’s Sarah Langs, Muncy’s ball was the second-longest projected distance on a batted ball resulting in a double play in the Statcast Era (since 2015).

The inning-ending double play kept the game scoreless, which is how it remained until Freddie Freeman hit a solo home run in the top of the sixth inning. Los Angeles eventually took a 2-0 lead into the bottom of the ninth inning, when Milwaukee scored a run on a sacrifice fly and had the bases loaded with two outs. Blake Treinen, who had walked Contreras to load the bases, then struck out Brice Turang on a 2-2 fastball way above the strike zone. The Dodgers sweated out a Game 1 victory that would have been made considerably easier if Teoscar Hernández (or any of the other runners) actually knew the rules. It looks like in addition to PFPs, players may also have to hit the (rule) books come next spring.