Javier Baez came up to the big leagues as a shortstop, but plays all over the diamond for Joe Maddon’s Chicago Cubs team.
It’s particularly fun to watch the 23-year-old play third base, where his shortstop skills allow him to make some crazy plays that the average third baseman cannot.
An example of that came on Thursday night in Miami, when the Marlins’ J.T. Realmuto hit a groundball which forced Baez to range far to his left. And then, well, it’s hard to even explain the rest of this play because I can’t remember ever seeing one like it. Watch it for yourself:
Almost the best play ever https://t.co/ydJAAQrfh0
— Evan Altman (@DEvanAltman) June 24, 2016
Realmuto was originally ruled out, before replay showed he barely beat the throw. But Baez deserved for Realmuto to be ruled out just because. What an insane, acrobatic play, and the throw was particularly incredible.
As for the game, the Marlins came out on top 4-2, handing the Cubs’ their first four-game losing streak of the season.
