Watch Jackie Bradley Jr. avoid colliding with Xander Bogaerts to make a sliding 11th-inning catch
Jackie Bradley Jr. showed off his range tracking back for a risky catch against the wall Monday during the Red Sox’s 2017 opener. In the team’s second game of the season Wednesday, Bradley showed he can also cover some ground running forward.
Just watch out for the incoming shortstop.
.@JackieBradleyJr – full speed ahead. pic.twitter.com/W9ZIgeIkUj
— MLB (@MLB) April 6, 2017
Bradley’s full-speed slide temporarily kept the bases clear in the 11th inning of 0-0 game and — perhaps more importantly — avoided a potentially dangerous collision with Xander Bogaerts. An inning and a half later, catcher Sandy Leon ended the game with a three-run, 12th-inning walk-off home run.
According to MLB’s Statcast, Bradley covered 81 feet to make Wednesday’s catch, which is just six feet fewer than the distance he ran to make Monday’s catch. If last season was any indicator, this could become a trend.
https://twitter.com/statcast/status/849819043225780224
