Wilyer Abreu’s throw to nail Vlad Guerrero at second last night isn’t going to be remembered as an all-time great throw. It’s not even going to be remembered next week. But damn, it was pretty.
Here’s how the play looked live on TV:
And here’s an even better angle showing just how smooth the play was, and how absolutely perfect his timing had to be to convert the out.
For whatever reason, it seems that only a few throws in baseball history are allowed entry into the collective consciousness among the greatest
plays in baseball history. There’s Ichiro throwing out Terrance Long, which has gained icon status not merely because of the aesthetics of the play itself, but because this is essentially how Ichiro introduced himself to the American baseball audience:
There’s Bo Jackson’s seemingly impossible throw to nab Harold Reynolds at the plate. Every time I see this one I still think Reynolds is going to be safe:
And then there’s Brooks Robinson in the 1970 World Series. I bet you picture this exact play in your head every time you hear the name Brooks Robinson:
But outside of those three throws, I’m genuinely not sure whether any other arm-based defensive plays can be considered iconic, which is a shame because a perfect laser from the outfield corner might be the prettiest single play a baseball game can produce.
And it got me thinking: what’s the most famous throw in Red Sox history? For as long and as storied a history this ballclub has, I’m not sure the Sox have an iconic throwing moment. Well, actually, that’s not true. The Sox have an extremely iconic throw — it’s just not iconic in the way that Bo Jackson’s was:
So what’s the greatest throw in Sox history? Or your favorite one? Am I missing something obvious and will anything ever top Manny’s cutoff?
Use this space to talk about arms and whatever else you want and, as always, be good to one another.
