Darin Ruf is now a serious contender for weirdest swing of the season

Monday night. Bottom of the eighth. The Phillies were down, 2-1. For Darin Ruf, it was go time.

As he stepped into the batter's box, the Citizens Bank Park lights shined brighter than ever. Our intrepid left fielder was feeling the pressure. "Gotta get on base, gotta get on base," he thought to himself, "Just gotta get on base."

Distracted as he was, Ruf apparently forgot that swinging is optional. Tyler Clippard's pitch bounced into the dirt a good foot ahead of home plate, but the batter graciously took a whack at it anyway. Too bad this isn't cricket (or Whac-A-Mole).

Ruf ultimately popped out to Ian Desmond, but all was not lost. Cesar Hernandez and Jimmy Rollins scored later in the inning, boosting the Phils to a 3-2 victory over Washington.