Matt Carpenter Bunted for the Easiest Double You'll Ever See

St. Louis’ Matt Carpenter realized he could get an easy single by bunting against the Miami Marlins’ shift last night. He probably didn’t expect his efforts, which were pretty minimal, to result in a stand-up double. But that’s just what happened as no defender was within a zip code to pick up the rolling baseball.

The Marlins’ decision to shift so dramatically with only one strike is perplexing. I’m going to go against the grain here and suggest that while embarrassing giving up a double is bad, getting Carpenter to bunt for a single with two outs is almost a victory.

Next time, maybe keep the third baseman a little closer to the line so the pitcher doesn’t have to do any extra cardio.

If Carpenter is a supporter of print media he can open up this morning’s newspaper and pretend that extra-base hit was a screaming liner off the wall. That’s his right, per baseball tradition.