Rangers infielder Marcus Semien was out by a hair, or in this case, the tip of a finger.
An empty one, at that.
That was the call at the end of a lengthy video review that resulted in a bizarre double-play in the bottom of the fifth inning in the Rangers’ 10-3 Game 4 blowout loss in the ALCS on Thursday night.
With nobody out in the frame and runners at first and second, Texas shortstop Corey Seager ripped a shot toward first baseman José Abreu, who made the catch for the initial out, forcing Semien to scramble back to first to try and avoid a force out.
But Abreu managed to tag the tip of Semien’s batting glove, resulting in an out on a play where he was originally ruled safe.
At first glance, it looked as though Semien had completely avoided the tag, but the Astros challenged the call on the field and sent the decision to MLB’s New York headquarters for review.
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That was when a zoomed-in look at the play revealed that Abreu’s swipe managed to catch the batting glove sticking out of Semien’s back pocket.
The overturned call resulted in the second out of the inning, and rookie Evan Carter subsequently lined out to center field to end the inning.
The double play ended what could have started a rally for the Rangers, who at that point trailed 7-3.
Texas had held a 2-0 series lead after taking the first two games in Houston, but returned to Globe Life Park to rather disappointing results.
The Rangers are trying to prevent the Astros from reaching the World Series for the fourth time in five years.
