During the game against the Iowa Hawkeyes in the Terre Haute, Indiana region this past weekend, Indiana State outfielder Adam Pottinger came dangerously close to stealing a home run and turning it into a fantastic play highlight-reel moment.
It’s gone viral, however, for a different reason.
Pottinger played off the situation so well that those watching the center fielder had no idea he did not catch the ball when he mounted the barrier.
After Brayden Frazier smashed the ball to the left field wall, Pottinger wasted no time “getting on his horse” and running down the ball heading toward the outfield wall. He leaped up for the grab, and at the moment, it appeared as though he had snatched the ball to rob Frazier of a homer.
Upon seeing the confident Pottinger trotting in toward the infield, Frazier gave up, dejected, and started back to the dugout from the base paths.
In the previous regional encounter between these two teams, Pottinger had previously made a spectacular grab on a shot that would be a home run for Frazier.
It seemed like Frazier didn’t get enough barrel on the ball to get it out of Pottinger’s grasp once again, but as the announcers announced that Pottinger had “done it again,” the cheeky left-fielder opened his glove to show that he didn’t have it.
Pottinger smiled as he revealed his joke. Frazier completed his trot around the bases, and the score was updated to 11-8 with the Indiana State Sycamores in the driver’s seat.
Ultimately, this would be the game’s final score, and the Sycamores would go on to compete in the super-regional tournament. In the game, Pottinger went one-for-three and drove in three runs.
Following this, Indiana State will travel to TCU to compete in the super-regional against the Horned Frogs. The victor of this match will advance to the College World Series in Omaha.
