'It all counts': Triolo gets a helping hand from Marsee on 2nd HR
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MIAMI -- Jared Triolo’s second homer of the season cleared the wall at loanDepot park ... with some help from Marlins center fielder Jakob Marsee.
“That one definitely was a sigh of relief,” Triolo said after the Pirates’ 13-1 win over the Marlins on Thursday. “I don’t think I’ve ever had [an assist on a homer].”
Triolo paused for a few seconds before asking reporters, “It wasn’t over the fence?"
“It was close," he concluded. "… It all counts.”
In the fifth inning Thursday afternoon against Marlins starter Tyler Phillips, Triolo connected on a 1-0 pitch at 103 mph that traveled a Statcast-projected 395 feet before it grazed the bottom of Marsee’s glove and bounced into the artificial grass beyond the center-field wall.
“It sounded loud off the bat, and if it's loud off the bat to me, that probably means it's going over the wall,” Phillips said. “So I barely even watched it.”
Phillips eventually turned around and saw the play at the wall.
“I just appreciate the effort out of [Marsee],” Phillips said. “No matter what happens, if you're going hard after a ball that I gave up hard contact on, it's my fault. [It] would have been a cool play, but unfortunately, just sneaked out of the glove there.”
Marsee thought he had a chance to make the catch, just like any other ball that comes his way.
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“I was running at it,” he said. “[I] thought I had it, knew I was going to have to make a play, kind of like the one yesterday, and just unfortunately, it hits the top of the wall. Nothing I can really do there."
And when did Marsee know it was a homer?
“When I looked into my glove,” the center fielder said.
The solo shot put the Pirates up, 2-0, after Jake Mangum scored on a balk by Phillips on the previous play.
Marsee's assist marked the second time in the past two weeks that a Miami outfielder helped a homer over the wall. On Aug. 6, Heriberto Hernández and Esteury Ruiz collided to put a ball over the left-center wall, resulting in a two-run homer by Atlanta's Ronald Acuña Jr.
Thursday's play came one day after Marsee made a sensational leap at the wall to rob Esmerlin Valdez of at least extra bases during Pittsburgh's 8-2 loss.
“He makes a phenomenal play yesterday and great effort by Jakob again going up,” Marlins manager Clayton McCullough said. “It was a tough play, just going up there and got the glove on there, but then as you're kind of contacting the wall or going in, it just slipped out and went over.
“Took one away the other day and he gave his best effort, just unfortunate how it ended up."