Tip your cap — or glove — to Merrill, Bogaerts for preserving no-no
AJ Cassavell
WASHINGTON — Every no-hitter has that signature defensive play — the moment a no-hit bid stays alive and baseball history is preserved.
But there haven’t been many like Jackson Merrill‘s catch on Thursday afternoon during Dylan Cease’s no-hitter at Nationals Park — a catch with an assist from second baseman Xander Bogaerts.
Cease was utterly dominant in authoring the second no-hitter in Padres history, a 3-0 victory in the series finale. But — like every pitcher who’s ever thrown one — Cease got some help from his defense.
In the bottom of the fifth, Cease was cruising when Nationals cleanup hitter Juan Yepez lifted a pop fly beyond second base. Bogaerts ranged back into center field, and waved off Merrill. Bogaerts appeared to make the play initially — and then the ball popped out of his glove and back into the air. Merrill was there.
“Just playing keepy-ups, making sure it doesn’t hit the ground,” Merrill said afterward with a laugh. “That’s all I had to do.”
Perhaps the best historical comparison is DeWayne Wise’s juggling catch to preserve Mark Buerhle’s perfect game for the White Sox in 2009. That, of course, was a perfect game to Cease’s no-hitter. But this catch featured twice as many defenders.
Bogaerts — who found himself at the center of the action on Thursday — said he initially felt in control of the play. But at the last moment, he heard footsteps and thought Merrill might’ve been arriving to make the play.
Bogaerts is not exactly sure if that’s what caused the ball to come loose. But he’s certainly happy Merrill was there to catch it. Given the degree of difficulty, the play would’ve almost certainly been ruled a hit.
“Relief,” Bogaerts said. “Hearing his footsteps toward the end, I kind of waved him off, but I didn’t say, ‘I got it.’ I heard his footsteps, got a little hesitant. Then it popped up. He was right there.”
In the eighth inning, Bogaerts again preserved the no-hitter, making a diving play to his left on a Keibert Ruiz grounder. As he got up to throw, he bobbled the ball, but he recovered in time to make the play at first.
“It feels like every no-hitter, there’s a couple plays like that that are just remarkable,” Cease said.
The Padres’ defense was excellent all-around in the history-making performance. Ha-Seong Kim made a smooth tag on a Lane Thomas stolen-base attempt in the first. In the fourth, Donovan Solano and Kim combined on a nifty 5-6-3 double play.
But none of those plays came close to topping the combo catch made by Bogaerts and Merrill. Of course, Merrill entered the season as a life-long shortstop, who had never played center field before at any level. It sure hasn’t looked like it.
“He’s always in good position,” Bogaerts said. “You see it in the hitting, the baserunning, the defense — you name it, he’s there. Obviously, he’s young, very energetic, a lot of energy. We kind of feed off him a lot of the time. I feel like that’s very routine for him to be in the right spot.”
Merrill had a starting position of 313 feet, according to Statcast, then covered 96 feet of ground just to get into position in the event he might be needed. Turned out he was.
“Would’ve been a tough play for me,” Merrill said. “I’m glad he went for it. It made it a little easier, honestly. But definitely a little more stressful.”
