The Los Angeles Dodgers found themselves in a one-out jam with the bases loaded in the bottom of the ninth inning Friday night as they hung on to a one-run lead. Dodgers closer Tanner Scott got a ground ball for a much-needed shot at a double play, but it was the furthest thing from routine.
Second baseman Tommy Edman fielded the ball hit by Royals rookie Jac Caglianone cleanly and fired it over to Mookie Betts at shortstop for out No. 1. Betts had to turn it as quickly as he could to beat Caglianone to first and stop the tying run from scoring and preserving the win.
The throw to first skipped through the Kauffman Stadium dirt as Dodgers first baseman Freddie Freeman made a tremendous effort to scoop the ball while keeping his foot on the bag, laying out nearly in the splits for the final out of the game.
He held his glove triumphantly in the air while falling to the ground as the out was called, with the ball poking out of his mitt after the snow-cone catch.
If the ball got by Freeman, that very well could have turned the game from a Dodgers win to a crushing road loss. With the victory, the Dodgers claimed the best record in baseball (52-31) after the previous owner of that honor, the Detroit Tigers, dropped a game to the Minnesota Twins on Friday and fell to 51-32 on the season. And it's all because Freeman stayed in front of the ball.
