The nominations are officially OPEN for the SnakePit Awards Play of the Year, and if you thought this would be an easy choice, you got another thing coming! This isn’t just a popularity contest, folks, it’s a battle of the highlight reels, and the early contenders are absolutely insane.
Home Runs That Had Us Losing Our Minds
Forget just regular dingers, we’re talking about plays that etched themselves into our memories. Ketel Marte, man, he had not one, but *two* monster moments. His walk-off, three-run blast against the Giants on May 19th was pure cinematic gold. Then just a week later, on May 26th, he smashed another one 452 feet at night in San Francisco. Are you kidding me? Two incredible home runs from the same guy in a week. But don’t sleep on Geraldo Perdomo’s inside-the-parker on July 19th, that’s pure hustle and chaos. And how about Ryan Waldschmidt? He had not one, but *two* walk-off heroics, one against the Dodgers on August 7th and another against the Cubs on August 25th, which upped the win probability by a staggering +85.5%! These aren’t just home runs, they’re season-defining moments.
Defensive Gems That Left Our Jaws On The Floor
It wasn’t just bats blazing, the leather work this season was next level. Jose Fernandez’s impossible catch in the netting on May 1st, that’s the kind of play you replay a dozen times. Nolan Arenado was out there crafting double plays on May 12th and making nifty third outs on June 12th like it was nothing. Ketel Marte wasn’t just a slugger, he was a defensive wizard with a barehanded play on May 12th and another defensive gem on July 17th. We saw Kevin Ginkel pick off Luis Arraez at second on May 27th, and a classic 6-2 double play on June 23rd that showed off some serious team defense. And can we talk about Gabriel Moreno throwing out Shohei Ohtani at second on August 7th? That’s just pure defiance right there. Geraldo Perdomo had a sick jump throw on August 10th, and Ildemaro Vargas nabbed Bryce Eldridge at the plate on August 29th. In the outfield, Alek Thomas made a diving catch on April 3rd, Lourdes Gurriel Jr. threw out Myles Straw on April 18th and then flat out *robbed* a home run on July 3rd! Tim Tawa’s incredible backhanded running catch on May 1st, Tommy Troy robbing Jacob Young of extra bases on June 6th, Jordan Lawlar’s stellar play in center on June 12th, Ryan Waldschmidt’s great leaping catch on July 27th, and his rolling grab on August 14th,these are all plays that saved runs and changed games. And Corbin Carroll! We all remember him flat out *robbing* a home run on August 7th. Lars Nootbaar had a leaping catch at the wall on August 19th that could be a contender itself.
So, what’s it gonna be? One home run, two infield plays, two outfield plays? That’s the typical breakdown, but honestly, with this insane list of plays, anything could happen. The folks running the SnakePit Awards are counting on us to weigh in. Get to the comments, ‘rec’ your favorites, or if your top play isn’t listed, drop the full description and a video link. They’ll be tallying up the recs mid-week, and we’ll see which five or so plays make the final cut. Get those votes in, because this Play of the Year race is officially ON!
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by Yahoo Sports.
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