MLB Twitter can't get enough of Wander Franco's viral 'ball flip' originally appeared on NBC Sports Chicago
Wander Franco turned a routine play into a viral moment on Wednesday night.
In the top of the seventh inning at Tropicana Field, Pittsburgh Pirates center fielder Bryan Reynolds hit a sharp grounder to Franco at shortstop. Franco fielded the ball and transferred it from his glove to his throwing hand, but he didn't immediately throw over to first base after.
Instead, the Tampa Bay Rays phenom spun the ball into the air, caught it and then fired to first in time for the third out.
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A bat flip but for a fielder...how's that for innovation?
Franco then led off the bottom of the frame with a rocket to right-center field for his sixth home run of the year.
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It was quite the sequence for the 22-year-old, but the "ball flip" unsurprisingly overshadowed the homer.
MLB fans couldn't get enough of Franco adding his own flair in the field:
