ANAHEIM, Calif. — For the second time in nine days, the Mariners and an umpiring crew simultaneously forgot how to count to four.
Angels designated hitter Bobby Abreu was allowed to take first base on a three-ball count in the third inning of Los Angeles’ 4-2 victory over the Mariners on Sunday.
Incredibly, the same thing happened to Seattle on July 2 against San Diego.
Home plate umpire Gerry Davis apparently lost track of Felix Hernandez’s count on Abreu, and the Seattle dugout didn’t protest when Abreu dropped his bat on a 3-1 count and trotted to first base. Abreu also thought he had taken four balls, only learning he got it wrong when he returned to the dugout.
Last weekend, San Diego’s Cameron Maybin took first on a 2-2 pitch and eventually scored the only run in the fifth inning of the Mariners’ 1-0 loss to the Padres.
Abreu’s walk was the 1,400th of his career, third-most among active players. The veteran slugger can’t remember taking his base on three balls in any of his previous 1,399 free passes.
“I thought it was ball four, so I guess I got confused too,” Abreu said. “It’s funny, and it’s weird at the same time. You’ve got the professional umpires that know everything, and it still happened.”
Footnotes.
The Twins activated outfielder Delmon Young from the 15-day disabled list, recalled infielder Trevor Plouffe from Triple-A Rochester and sent catcher Rene Rivera and outfielder Rene Tosoni to the minor-league club.
• The Tigers optioned struggling left-hander Charlie Furbush (1-3) to Triple-A Toledo and recalled infielder Danny Worth.
• The White Sox placed catcher Ramon Castro on the 15-day DL because of a broken right hand and index finger and recalled Tyler Flowers from Triple-A Charlotte to take his place.
The Associated Press
