Yankees' Gio Urshela flings himself into Rays dugout to make amazing catch
On the last day of the regular season, New York Yankees shortstop Gio Urshela made one of the most dramatic, daredevil catches of the year.
In a scoreless game that the Yankees need to win to fully secure a place in the AL wild-card game, Urshela ran full speed into the visiting dugout to catch the last out of the sixth inning, a pop fly in foul territory off the bat of Tampa Bay Rays slugger Austin Meadows.
Umpire Ángel Hernández, sprinting to stay with the play, tumbled over the railing after Urshela before emphatically signaling an out amid the unfolding chaos. A few minutes elapsed as fans chanted “GI-O” and Yankees personnel disappeared into the dugout. They all emerged to an uproarious cheer from the crowd.
On #Game162, @Urshela10 makes the CATCH OF THE YEAR. pic.twitter.com/VCS3L7lYMU
— MLB (@MLB) October 3, 2021
Urshela appeared to be limping, but walked across the field under his own power. He initially stayed in the game and eventually exited. Manager Aaron Boone — who sprinted across the field when Urshela barreled into the Rays dugout — said he wasn't sure he even wanted to see a replay of the "epic" play.
"He looked like a missile flying in there," Boone said. "It scared me to death."
Boone said the team believes Urshela escaped with only a bruise, and did not seem concerned about his availability for the wild-card game.
It was a high-risk out for the Yankees, who are already without versatile infielder DJ LeMahieu, who was placed on the injured list ahead of Sunday’s game and will be out at least until the ALCS, if the Yankees were to make it that far.