ANAHEIM -- After the ball got stuck in his glove as he tried to start a double play, Angels first baseman Nolan Schanuel had to get creative in the third inning of an eventual 5-1 loss to Mets on Sunday.
With a runner at first base and one out in the third, right-hander Jack Kochanowicz got Juan Soto to ground to first for what looked like a potential inning-ending double play. But as Schanuel got ready to throw to second base, he realized the ball was stuck in his first-base mitt and he couldn’t make the throw to get the lead runner.
Schanuel, though, didn’t panic. He promptly took off his glove and flung it with the ball in it to Kochanowicz at first base for a close play with Soto ruled out. Kochanowicz looked surprised to have the glove thrown to him but made the play.
“I've never had that happen before,” Kochanowicz said. “Don't think I'll ever have that again. But, I mean, credit him for not panicking. It's a crazy play.”
It helped him get out of the inning despite not getting the double play, as he then hit MJ Melendez with a pitch but struck out Brett Baty to escape further trouble and get through three scoreless frames.
Kochanowicz ended up going 6 1/3 innings, allowing two runs on five hits and three walks with six strikeouts, but was stuck with a hard-luck loss.
“I felt pretty good,” Kochanowicz said. “I just threw too many balls throughout the entire game, but I settled down and got through the lineup a few times. But it was just a tough one.”