MIAMI -- Speed, they say, never takes a day off. It's a good thing it didn't for the Marlins in the third inning of Wednesday's 8-1 win, when the Giants were mounting a rally at Marlins Park.
Miami was in control from the beginning, and it led by four runs when San Francisco chipped back with a run. But before the Giants could do more damage, Dee Gordon turned on the burners and outraced Nick Hundley to first base for the final out of the third.
"It was a funky game, really," Marlins manager Don Mattingly said. "There were a lot of balls [that bounced around]."
The Giants had runners on first and second when Hundley slapped a grounder to second. First baseman Tomas Telis ranged to his right, but he wasn't able to make the play. Pitcher Jose Urena was late dashing to cover first base, but Gordon instead opted to complete the play himself.
"I was trying to get an out, because if I didn't make that out, the guy could have scored," Gordon said. "I was just trying to get that out."
Gordon raced from where he fielded the grounder, which had an exit velocity of 57.7 mph, with a foot speed of 28.7 feet per second, according to Statcast™. While that is fast, it's actually below Gordon's top speed of 29.6 feet per second.
Telis, primarily a catcher who is seeing some time at first base, noted he was too far from the base to have gotten back in time.
"I thought I could get [the grounder], but it was too far away," Telis said. "I didn't have a chance to get back. Urena was late, too. Dee Gordon got the out. That was a good play. Yeah, he's fast."
Gordon was the National League's Gold Glove Award winner at second base in 2015.
The play worked out for Miami, and fortunately, Gordon and Hundley were able to avoid colliding.