Here is the take-out slide by Utley (via @AmazinAvenue) pic.twitter.com/nUDNMAQtur
— HuffPost Sports (@HuffPostSports) October 11, 2015
Los Angeles Dodgers infielder Chase Utley broke up a play at second base and turned Game 2 of the NLDS completely on its head.
With one up-the-middle grounder off the bat of Howie Kendrick, the NLDS between the New York Mets and Los Angeles Dodgers was completely turned on its head thanks to one person.
Chase Utley.
Utley, a man hated by the majority of the five boroughs, played 13 seasons with the Philadelphia Phillies and played the role of thorn in the side of the Mets for over a decade.
Tonight, he did it again, and then some.
Check out the hard and late slide Utley performed on Ruben Tejada in effort to break up a potential inning ending (7th) double-play (video above).
The slide was no doubt wide, hard, late and perhaps, very dirty. Utley has never been a dirty player. In fact, his reputation has always been more of the hard-nosed variety.
This one hurt the Mets. Tejada immediately left the game in an air-cast and on a cart.
Furthermore, although a run scored on the Kendrick grounder – which tied the game 2-2 – Utley was called out at second base after Daniel Murphy successfully shuffled the ball to Tejada at second. After further review, however, Tejada never touched the bag and Utley was called safe.
This allowed the Dodgers to knock in three more runs in taking a commanding 5-2 lead. Instead of dealing with a runner on first base and two out, Addison Reed and company were faced with runners on first and second with one out.
The reversed call became so controversial due to Utley not touching second base himself.
MLB explained that an umpire can call the runner safe even if he doesn’t touch the bag. This, only if he was called out initially. (Because who would touch the base after the ump had already called the runner out?)
In the end Twitter went nuts, as did Mets fans:
Lots of instant reaction to Chase Utley's slide. pic.twitter.com/xwiZY7c23j
— Baseball Tonight (@BBTN) October 11, 2015
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