What’s the worst possible thing that can happen to an outfielder in a given game? It very well might be what happened to minor-leaguer Trayce Thompson on Friday night in Albuquerque.
With one out in the ninth inning of a tie game, an Albuquerque Isotopes player hit a deep fly ball toward Thompson in center field. Thompson back-pedaled up the odd hill in front of the fence, reached up to make the catch and… watched as the ball plopped off his glove and over the fence for a walk-off home run.
We can cut Thompson a break because of that hill, but that’s still a ball you’re gonna want to catch. And if you’re not going to catch it, well, at least keep it in the park.
If Thompson’s name sounds familiar to you, it might be because he has 405 Major-League plate appearances for the White Sox and Dodgers, most recently in April. Or it might be because his brother is Klay Thompson, All-Star shooting guard for the Golden State Warriors.
But for today at least, Thompson’s accomplishments and his family ties are over-shadowed by a play that will surely land him on blooper reels around the country.
Thompson can take solace in one thing, however: At least he’s not Jose Canseco.
