Yes, you really can steal first base
Crafting the Call: How to sound smart during bad baserunning ... and other advice when something happens you've never seen
The cliche is most often used when describing a really fast baserunner who can’t get on base frequently enough to take advantage of his speed.
You can’t steal first base.
Actually, technically, it’s happened a couple times in baseball history. Just not in the way you might think.
On this week’s “Crafting the Call” episode, Jesse Goldberg-Strassler and I dedicated the show on how broadcasters can sound smart during dumb baserunning.
On August 16, 1987, Toronto Blue Jays center fielder Lloyd Moseby stole second base, then kinda stole first base, then stole second base again. All on the same play.
Jesse and I watched and discussed that play, then followed it with this famous play involving Jean Segura stealing second, stealing first, and then getting thrown out trying to steal second base again.
Crafting the Call is a YouTube series that I developed along with Jesse Goldberg-Strassler. Each week, we examine different aspects of baseball play-by-play announcing, offering our perspective as working professionals for fans and advice for fellow broadcasters. To help support our work, subscribe, like, comment, or send us a suggestion for a future episode.
Of course, you can’t have an episode about dumb baserunning without including Ruben Rivera’s disastrous trip around the bases in 2003, which Giants announcer Jon Miller famously called, “the worst baserunning in the history of the game.”
Yes, we included that clip.
In fact, we started with that play.
Here’s a link to the full episode.
In my previous career, I was the Giants beat writer for The Oakland Tribune and covered that game with Rivera’s blunder.
I went looking for my game story to see how I described it as a print reporter. That play was in the ninth inning and sent the game into extra innings. It was past deadline for quotes and the final score.
Here’s what made it into print:
A couple footnotes about Rivera:
He was actually brought into that May 27 game as a pinch runner (for Andres Galarraga).
The next day, he entered the game on a double switch (remember those?) to play center field for the ninth inning. No balls were hit to him.
Those were the last two games Rivera ever played in the major leagues. The Giants released him June 3rd.
Rivera played in the minor leagues with the Orioles, Yankees and White Sox over the next few years. He then played for various teams in the Mexican League until 2019. He was still playing professional baseball age 45! But that disastrous trip around the bases essentially ended his major league career.
All the plays from this week’s episode:
Lloyd Moseby stealing second base twice.
Jean Segura goes 1-for-2 stealing second base in the same inning.
Carlton Fisk tags out two runners at home plate within seconds.
A “decoy” by the Twins middle infielders prevents Lonnie Smith from scoring the winning run in Game Seven of the 1991 World Series.
“Slide, Jeremy, slide!” (A’s fans know exactly what this means.)
We also wanted to turn the tables on ourselves and our own descriptions of wacky baserunning.
One of Jesse’s calls from a recent game.
One of my calls from a recent game.
A call by Jesse’s partner, Adam Jaksa, from a recent game.
Here’s a link to all the episodes on “Crafting the Call” and a screenshot to make sure you’ve found it.
The Knoblauch decoy is always one of my favorites! A rookie, in Game 7 of the World Series!!