The Angels and A’s did the honors in Oakland after LA tied the game in the top of the ninth. Under rules that are similar to ones in place in the minor leagues, the Halos put Shohei Ohtani, who made the last out in the ninth, on second base to begin the 10th. Ohtani promptly ran into an out and the Halos eventually stranded the bases loaded.
Up came the host A’s, who started their half with Marcus Semien on second. He stayed on the bases and eventually trotted home on Matt Olson’s walk-off grand slam. Oakland had a 7-3 victory for the books.
People took the time to tweet their thoughts on the rule, which is intended to reduce the length of some games and reduce the risk of COVID-19 spread at parks. The reactions were more negative than positive, at first glance.
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Oh, yeah, forgot to mention the Angels’ five-man infield once the potential winning run reached third.
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Two days into this abbreviated season, the baseball world has something unusual to discuss.
