Ball crushed, bases circled, homer celebrated ... except it was caught for out

Taylor Trammell got the Astros on the board Monday in an emphatic way, launching a center-cut fastball from Blue Jays starter Shane Bieber to a solo home run. It cut Toronto’s lead to 3-1 in the bottom of the fourth inning.

Except that’s not really how it went, outside of Trammell’s head.

Trammell sent the ball a projected 419 feet to deep right-center field at 110.4 mph off the bat, the hardest-hit ball of Monday’s game. It had a .960 expected batting average and would have been a home run in 25 of 30 MLB parks, according to Statcast. Houston’s Daikin Park was not one of those 25.

Blue Jays center fielder Myles Straw made clear his thoughts about that .960 expected average, too. A former Astro who knows Daikin Park’s outfield well, Straw leaped at the wall and brought down a spectacular catch, all while seemingly having to fight through something in his eyes.

Trammell had no clue, still thinking he’d hit his sixth home run of the season. He raced around the bases and celebrated as he crossed home plate.

It wasn’t until he started back to the home dugout before he realized Straw made the grab. Trammell did a double-take and sported a face of pure shock before finally making his way back to the bench.

Meanwhile, Straw’s catch helped Bieber work through 5 2/3 innings of one-run ball, earning the win in Toronto’s 3-1 victory over the Astros.