What should have been a routine play ended up being one of the most embarrassing moments of this young MLB season.
On Sunday night, in the bottom of the second inning, Giants shortstop Nik Ahmed made a clean play on a grounder hit by Phillies third baseman Alec Bohm, but when he stepped on the throw, Ahmed’s left cleat was stuck in the wet Philadelphia rain. It looked like it was stuck in the ground. His throw sailed well over first baseman Lamonte Wade Jr. and beyond the Phillies dugout.
This was a costly mistake as the Giants ultimately lost 5-4. Bohm, who started the first inning, automatically advanced to second base because his throw went out, and Bohm then scored to tie the game at 1-1.
Brandon Marsh grounded out to advance Boehm to third base, and after a strikeout by Nick Castellanos and a walk by Bryson Stott, Edmundo Sosa drove in Boehm with an infield hit that broke his bat.
The error was Ahmed’s third of the season.
The 34-year-old spent 10 seasons with the Diamondbacks before being waived in September, winning back-to-back Gold Gloves in 2018 and ’19.
He signed a minor league contract with the Giants in February and was named the starting shortstop.
Ahmed has played in 33 games this season, hitting .235 with a .569 OPS and nine RBIs.
His best offensive season was 2019, when he hit .254/.316/.437 with 19 home runs and 82 RBIs.
The Giants (15-20) dropped the first three games of a round-of-the-round series in Philadelphia that ends Monday afternoon.
The Phillies (24-11) entered Monday with the best record in MLB, having won 16 of their past 19 games.
