Article: Straw's on Second

[Leo Morgenstern]

In the bottom of the sixth inning on Sunday, Myles Straw made a terrific catch.

With two outs, Rays batter Chandler Simpson lined a Paxton Schultz fastball to shallow center field. Straw made the sliding grab look easy, but, of course, it wasn’t. Even a slightly slower outfielder would have had to play it on a hop. And god forbid, if the ball had gone past Straw, the lightning-fast Simpson could have easily turned it into a triple. Instead, Toronto's center fielder recorded the final out of the inning like it was nothing. He slid for the ball and popped back up to jog toward the dugout in one fluid motion. It was just another day at the office for one of the best defensive outfielders in the league:

Yet, the next time Straw got his hands on the ball, he was playing a whole new position. In the bottom of the seventh, Nathan Lukes came in to play left field. He took first baseman Vladimir Guerrero Jr.'s spot in the lineup. To make that work, a few more switcheroos were in order. Jonatan Clase went from left field to center. Michael Stefanic slid from second base to shortstop. Ernie Clement moved from shortstop to first base. That left Straw to play... second base? Yup, second base.

Straw had not played the infield since 2020, when he played three innings at shortstop for the Astros in a blowout win. He hasn't played second base since 2019. In total, he has played 54 innings at the keystone in his major league and minor league careers combined. The last of those innings was on September 29, 2019. 

So, you can hardly blame Straw for looking a little rusty in the infield on Sunday. He only had to make one play at second base, and it was a routine groundball. However, he double-clutched on the throw before slowly lobbing it over to Clement at first base. Thankfully, Yandy Díaz was the one doing the running (if you can even call it that; it was more of a light jog), giving Straw plenty of time to make his awkward throw and record the assist:

I can't help but wonder: How often does a Gold Glove-winning center fielder make a highlight-reel catch in the outfield to end one inning, only to find himself at second base – a position he hasn’t played in more than five years – the very next frame? How often do you see a player show such defensive acumen on one play, only to look completely unprepared the next time he touches the ball? Unfortunately, Stathead doesn't have a filter for a search that specific. Ah, well. 

Blowout losses like the 13-0 pounding the Blue Jays suffered on Sunday aren’t fun. Still, you can find some fun in even the toughest of losses if you’re willing to look for it. Straw playing second base was just one example. 

Another example? Let's turn to the player who started the game at second. Clement moved from second base to shortstop to first base back to shortstop in the span of three innings. Even for a player whose versatility is a key component of his skill set, that's rare to see. This was the first time he had ever played three different positions in the same game, and certainly the first time he had switched positions three times in three consecutive innings. (He also made outs at all three spots!) What's more, Clement became the first player in Blue Jays history to appear at first base, second base, and shortstop in the same game, and the first MLB player to do so since Brock Holt of the Red Sox in July 2019. 

Meanwhile, Stefanic became the first Blue Jay ever to appear at second base, shortstop, and pitcher in the same game. (The last MLB player to play those three positions in a game was Pablo Reyes, also of the Red Sox, in August 2023.) This was especially unusual considering Stefanic didn’t even start the game. He only played three defensive innings, and each was at a different spot on the diamond. In close to 150 years of MLB history, no one has ever before played each of those three positions in a game in which they had one plate appearance or fewer.

This was Stefanic's second pitching appearance; he also pitched an inning last year with the Angels. Not only that, but it was his second scoreless pitching appearance. While he may have been lobbing the ball over the plate at 60 mph, Stefanic retired all three batters he faced on just seven pitches. He was then the first batter up in the top of the ninth, where he worked an eight-pitch at-bat for a single (giving him a perfect 0.00 ERA and 1.000 batting average on the day). That single was one of just four Blue Jays hits in the entire game, and the first hit by a "pitcher" on any team all season. 

Funnily enough, a Blue Jays utility infielder was also one of only three “pitchers” to have a hit last season; Isiah Kiner-Falefa played third base, shortstop, and pitcher in a blowout loss to the Dodgers last April and singled in the bottom of the ninth after pitching the top of the inning.

All told, the Blue Jays had five different players switch positions and a total of eight positional switches in Sunday's game. In addition to Straw, Clement, Stefanic, and Clase, Anthony Santander moved from DH to first base, marking his first appearance in the infield with Toronto.

There is no denying this was a crappy weekend for the Blue Jays. Hot off a sweep of the Padres, the Jays were swept themselves. To make matters worse, the games weren’t all they lost. They also lost their hot-hitting backup catcher, Tyler Heineman, and one of their most important relievers, Yimi García, to the injured list. Nevertheless, we as fans must continue to look for ways to enjoy these games. Even the most crushing defeats can come with little bits of fun and weirdness that make the losses worth watching. If you're going to make it through a 162-game season, sometimes you just have to ignore the score and embrace the strange.

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