Washington Nationals center fielder Jacob Young made two incredible catches on Sunday that sent the New York Mets to a costly defeat.
Young used his foot to rob Brett Baty of extra bases with a juggling grab in the fifth inning, then made a leaping play in the ninth to take away a potential game-tying homer from Francisco Álvarez.
With the Mets down 3-1, Baty led off the fifth with a long fly ball to center field against Jake Irvin. Young raced back and got twisted around with the ball tailing back over his head.
He turned his body and leaped at the wall, but the ball was jarred out of his glove when he hit the fence. The ball never touched the wall, however, and a stumbling Young kicked it back up into the air with his right foot – hacky-sack style – before gloving it a second time for a circus catch.
Umpires immediately ruled Baty out as he sprinted around second base.
In the ninth inning, Alvarez led off with a high line drive to deep left-center field. Young again raced back and jumped, this time catching the ball cleanly at the top of the fence to help preserve a 3-2 victory.
New York, who have lost 11 of 15, began the day with a one-game lead over Cincinnati for the final National League wildcard spot. The loss, combined with the Reds’ win over the Chicago Cubs, put the teams even with 80 wins each. However the Reds hold the tiebreaker after they won the series between the teams earlier this season.
The Mets, who have the second-highest payroll in MLB, were 21 games above .500 at one point this season but have been plagued by poor starting pitching, blown leads and costly errors in the second-half of the season.
