In the eighth inning of the Los Angeles Dodgers’ blowout win against the Los Angeles Angels on Saturday, Shohei Ohtani roped a ball down the right field line and ended up scoring on the play.
There was a lot of confusion about what the ruling would be, whether it was a triple and error, an inside-the-park home run or a ground rule double, which would have taken away two runs from the Dodgers.
The confusion stemmed from the ball appearing to bounce out of play as it hit the netting down the line. Angels right fielder Jo Adell threw his hands up, but then played the ball as it bounced back into play. By the time the ball was back in the infield, Ohtani had nearly crossed home plate.
“I didn’t know about this netting,” Ohtani said. “When I played here, there wasn’t any netting. I just kept running.”
The Angels challenged the play, but the call stood: it was a live ball, and Ohtani had scored. It was not a ground-rule double because the netting in that specific area of the field is considered an extension of the wall, making it still in play when it bounced back.
The MLB rules state that a live ball (batted, thrown or otherwise) striking any screen or protective netting set on the field facing a wall or railing (a backstop or protective netting along the first or third base lines) and rebounding onto the field is live and in play. Any additional screening set behind an out-of-play area (dugout, photo or camera well, etc.) shall be considered out of play, and the ball would be dead if it hits that netting.
In addition, the first rule in the Angel Stadium ground rules states: A ball striking any forward-facing green-padded dugout or photographer well railing and rebounding onto the playing field is in play. The fan safety netting is also included in this rule as a forward-facing green-padded wall and net.
“No, because the ground rules here are, the netting, if it hits, it’s in play,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said when asked if he was concerned about the call being overturned. “So that wasn’t a question. I didn’t really know what they were challenging. We weren’t concerned about that.”
Angels manager Kurt Suzuki told reporters that he didn’t challenge if the ball was out of play, but instead checked if it hit a fan. That would have made it fan interference and sent Ohtani back to second base with Alex Call at third instead of both scoring.
“I didn’t have a good vantage point, so I didn’t know if a fan had interfered with it,” Roberts said. “So I thought just a Little League home run. It was good to see him hustle.”
Shohei Ohtani hit Little League inside-the-park home run
After the replay confirmed the ball was live and in play, Ohtani was credited with a triple and scored on an error from Adell, rather than a home run. That was Ohtani’s first triple of the season and was part of a four-run eighth inning for the Dodgers.
Still, it ended up being a Little League home run for the two-way star, and he finished the game going 2-for-4 with five RBI, two runs scored, a double and a triple.
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