Hartford

Yard Goats' Unusual Strikeout Becomes Viral Sensation

It's the odd strikeout that has gone viral.

Connecticut's Double-A minor league baseball team, the Yard Goats, played the Binghamton Rumble Ponies on Friday. In the top of the eighth inning, with the count at 1-2, Rumble Ponies pitcher Cory Burns lost his footing and threw the ball into the grass near the first base line.

Goats batter Josh Fuentes jokingly took a swing. But the ball was still live. The umpire called it a strike.

That was Fuentes' third strike and led to the end of the inning. And the Yard Goats ended up losing the game 5-4.

The play went viral and lead to a flurry of social media posts. Should the umpire have called a strike? Should Fuentes have known better?

Fuentes took to Twitter and had a good sense of humor about the strikeout.

https://twitter.com/jfuent19/status/868666860912484352
https://twitter.com/jfuent19/status/868676905100345344

The Yard Goats chimed in on the fun on social media.

Not everyone agreed that the umpire should have called a strike on what was an obvious joke swing. But technically, the ball was still live and play was still underway.    

Baseball fans around the country couldn't resist the opportunity to weigh in.

[[423511963, C]]

https://twitter.com/MikeQuiello/status/869024600230854657
https://twitter.com/MinnySeminole/status/868814979121782784

Through Sunday, Fuentes was batting .255 with 38 hits, 13 runs, three home runs, 22 RBI, and leading the team with four triples.

Contact Us