Yolmer's deke has to be seen to be believed
White Sox second baseman Yolmer Sánchez deserves an assist for baiting Mariners center fielder Mallex Smith into an out in the first inning on Saturday.
As Smith ran toward second base on Domingo Santana's liner toward right, Sanchez faked a throw to first, crossing up Smith, who then realized that a throw from right wasn't made after he touched the second-base bag. As Smith turned around toward first, he failed to retouch the second-base bag on his way to third. Second-base umpire Bruce Dreckman ruled Smith out, and the Mariners declined to challenge the play.
Instead of first and third and one out, the White Sox had two outs and Santana at first. Santana was initially credited with a single, but the official scorer changed it to a 9-4 putout.
When Sanchez returned to the dugout after the inning ended, his teammates congratulated the second baseman for his outstanding acting.
Despite Sanchez's subterfuge, Seattle went on to win, 9-2.
Another significant deke once happened to a guy named Smith (no relation): Atlanta's Lonnie Smith was famously fooled by the Twins infield during Game 7 of the 1991 World Series.