Lloyd Moseby double steal: Try not to cringe

Retired Blue Jays legends Lloyd Moseby and Roberto Alomar talk about the days of yore. (Photo courtesy of: Guelph Mercury Tribune)

Baseball is the most beautiful of games. It’s slow enough to follow, yet exciting enough to make your heart skip a beat. When the umpire motions to play ball, the fans never know just what to expect.

Baseball gives its fans lasting gifts of the mind. Remarkable plays to be recalled on those rainy days when baseball is on your lips, but not on the field. Saluting Super Duper Baseball Bloopers, the highlights of the game’s less than elite performances, exposes some of the most remarkable happenings the game has ever seen.

Now defunct Blockbuster Video produced arguably the greatest of all baseball blooper reels. Of course, I say this tongue in cheek but it might contain the greatest bizarre play of all time. If you’ve ever had the pleasure of watching “Super Duper Baseball Bloopers”, you might know where this is heading. If you haven’t seen it before, please, you owe it to yourself to watch it at least once.

Lloyd Moseby Double Steal

On Aug. 16, 1987, at Toronto’s Exhibition Stadium, Lloyd Moseby was the man of the hour. Powered by Moseby’s three hits and late seventh inning two-run homer, the Toronto Blue Jays emerged 6-4 winners over the White Sox. While that’s all well and good, it’s far from anything other than run-of-the-mill baseball.

Rewind to earlier in the game before Moseby’s seventh inning blast and you will find one of the true gems of baseball footage. See the play here!

Lloyd Moseby was one of the American League’s premier base stealing threats in the 1980s. (Photo by Ronald C. Modra/Sports Imagery/Getty Images)

With White Sox right-hander Bill Long on the mound and Carlton Fisk behind the plate, Fisk set up outside and readied for the pitch. The way Fisk set up before the offering from Long suggests he knew Moseby was running. Fisk was right in thinking so because Moseby was a perennial 30+ steals guy in the 1980s.

Right on cue, when Long unleashed his fastball toward home Moseby lit out for second base. Ozzie Guillen moved swiftly from his short stop position to cover the bag. Catching the pitch, Fisk exploded out of his crouch and uncorked a strike- to center fielder Kenny Williams.

Yes, former White Sox GM Kenny Williams.

Fisk’s throw to second was horrendously overthrown into center field. Moseby, with his head down chugging for second, most likely never saw the ball. Seeing that Kenny Williams had the ball, Moseby had to be thinking he had made a terrible mistake. Thinking he was about to get doubled off, Moseby lit out for first again causing the broadcast team to meltdown. It’s the part that always makes me chuckle.

Instead of just letting the play die with Moseby back on first, Kenny Williams let loose a throw that would make your grandmother cringe. How Williams managed to upstage Carlton Fisk’s rotten throw to second will forever be a mystery. Williams’ throw was a nasty one-hopper that bounced off the AstroTurf and crossed up first baseman Greg Walker. Walker tried to stab at it, but the ball ricocheted off his glove and skipped all the way to the wall in foul ground.

As Walker gave chase Moseby used this opportunity to do an about face, kick the throttle back into gear and high-tail it back to second. Wisely, Walker decided to eat the darn ball instead of throwing it around the park like Fisk and Williams. In doing so he also limited any further damage to the pride of White Sox defenders.

After this spectacular play rolls on the tape, it streams seamlessly into a sly Moseby talking about how this was always the plan. He said this was an exercise to teach kids that you can do something twice and be successful both times. Yeah, sure Lloyd!

We believe you.

(feature photo courtesy of: ESPN)

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