Houston Astros Introduce Four-Man Outfield, It Works

Traditionalists be damned, the age of the occasional four-man outfield is here. The forward-thinking Houston Astros wasted no time employing the defensive strategy in the season opener, sending third baseman Alex Bregman out to left field during a first inning Joey Gallo at-bat. Lo and behold, Gallo lofted a fly ball right to him.

Here was the alignment, which included no one on the left side of the infield.

Here’s where Bregman caught the ball.

OK, 1-for-1 thus far. A 100 percent rate. Surely this will never backfire. Revolution over. This is the new normal now.