Red Sox outfielders Ceddanne Rafaela and Wilyer Abreu combined for a remarkable defensive effort that robbed the Tigers of a potential home run in the seventh inning of Boston’s 6-5 loss to Detroit on Wednesday at Comerica Park.
With the game tied 5-5 in the bottom of the inning, Tigers designated hitter Kerry Carpenter launched a 95 MPH four-seam fastball from Liam Hendriks deep into right field.
Abreu tracked the ball to the warning track and timed his jump to make the catch, but the ball hit off the heel of his glove and bounced back toward the field — where it miraculously landed right into Rafaela’s bare hand.
Hendriks watched the play unfold from the mound and couldn’t believe what he saw.
“I don’t think I’ve ever seen anything like that,” Hendriks told reporters. “I’ve had some wild plays here, but that one was something else. Off the bat, I thought, ‘Oh, crap.’ Then I saw Willie tracking it, and thought maybe we had a chance. I didn’t expect that kind of chance.”
The umpires reviewed the play, but the call stood. Afterward, one of the umpires offered Hendriks a bit of advice.
“He told me, ‘You should hang on to that ball. That was a lucky one,’” Hendriks said. “So I did — and the next pitch was hit right to Trevor Story. Guess that ball had some good luck in it.”
