Washington Nationals Luis Garcia made an incredible heads-up play in the ninth inning of Friday’s game against the New York Mets.
With the Nationals leading 2-1, Garcia dove to stop a grounder up the middle from Francisco Lindor. Then while on his belly, Garcia flipped the ball to second base to beat Pete Alonso coming from first for the force out.
Nationals manager Dave Martinez and reliever Kyle Finnegan described Garcia’s as “bowling a strike,” per Mark Zuckerman of MASN Sports.
Having one out with a runner on first instead of two men on with no outs proved critical. The next better hit a grounder to Garcia, who turned a 4-3 double play to end the game.
Finnegan officially picked up the save. However, Garcia earned the save with two huge defensive plays. The sequence highlight the promising future of the 21-year old.
The Nationals have embarked on a rebuild following their fire sale before the trade deadline. Garcia has been identified as core piece towards the future. The pair of plays gives a glimpse of what may be in store for years to come at second base for Washington.
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