How does a 35-year-old 235-pound catcher score from first base on a ball that never leaves the infield without an error being recorded?
For the answer to this question, just as White Sox backstop A.J. Pierzynski, who managed to pull the trick against the Oakland Athletics on Sunday night.
With the Sox leading 6-2 and Pierzynski on first base in the bottom of the seventh, Alexei Ramirez poked a ball to the left side of the infield. Both A's third baseman Adam Rosales and A's shortstop Cliff Pennington went for the ball. Pennington fielded the grounder, bumped his teammate and then fired across the diamond to nail the speedy Ramirez at first. Running on the play, Pierzynski rounded second and kept chugging for third after he saw Rosales and Pennington tangled up and the bag undefended.
At this point, things got really silly.
Neither A's catcher Derek Norris and relief pitcher Evan Scribner were covering home plate, allowing Pierzynski to keep right on running until he added another run to the White Sox tally. The announcers' call suggests that perhaps Norris belatedly went to cover third, leaving home plate unprotected.
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Perhaps Pierzynski is the most-hated man in the majors because he'll make his fellow players look pretty ridiculous if they give him the chance.