Ozuna scales wall, takes away home run

July 16th, 2017

MIAMI -- Ever since the left-field fence at Marlins Park was lowered from 11 1/2 to 7 feet in 2016, 's footprints have been all over it.
In the sixth inning of Sunday's 3-2 loss to the Dodgers, the Marlins' outfielder robbed a home run from in one swift move. Ozuna took one step onto the pad before hanging over the wall and taking away what was a sure long ball to keep the game at 3-1.
"I just said, 'OK, this is a chance to make a good play,'" said Ozuna, who joked it was a routine play. "And it was right there. Not too far."
Per Statcast™, the ball traveled an estimated 369 feet with an exit velocity of 95 mph before Ozuna snagged it out of the air.
Ozuna, a two-time All-Star, is starting to make a habit of climbing the fence to steal extra-base hits.
His play on Sunday was similar to one he made in a 4-2 win over the Mets this April. In similar fashion, Ozuna hung onto the wall to rob of extra bases.
"That one he just kind of misplayed a little bit from the standpoint of it wasn't gonna go over," Marlins manager Don Mattingly said. "But that one was obviously a really nice play."

Ozuna wasn't the only Miami outfielder flashing the leather on Sunday.
In the fifth, perfectly timed a leaping snag at the left-center wall to rob of extra bases. And while couldn't come up with a catch at the right-field fence in the fourth, he put his body in harm's way and lost his glove over the wall in the process.
"You've gotta love outfielders that are willing to do that," Marlins starter said. "They're giving everything they've got. Made a couple really nice plays today, all three of them."

In some parks, Hernandez's 369-foot poke to left field is good enough to earn a trip around the bases. But at spacious Marlins Park, where the dimensions are 344 feet down the line and 386 feet in left-center, that isn't the case.
And it most certainly won't happen while Ozuna is patrolling the area.
"Yeah, I love it," Ozuna said. "Clinging to the fence."