CLEVELAND — A costly mental lapse by a Cleveland Guardians rookie outfielder handed the Texas Rangers the lead Tuesday night in a moment that left fans and players stunned.
Cooper Ingle, a rookie left fielder making just his second career start in the outfield, lost count of the outs during the seventh inning and casually flipped a live ball over the protective netting to fans as if it were a souvenir.
The situation unfolded with a runner standing at second base and one out already recorded. Ingle caught what appeared to be a routine fly ball off the bat of Rangers hitter Alejandro Osuna for what was actually the second out of the inning.
Believing the catch had ended the inning, Ingle glanced at the ball in his glove and then tossed it into the stands. The umpires immediately stopped play, ruling the ball dead and awarding Osuna home plate — giving Texas the go-ahead run.
Only after the ruling did Ingle realize what had happened. He walked slowly back to his position with a look of disbelief on his face. The play was officially scored as an error against him.
Ingle had only been called up from Triple-A Columbus the previous week and was one of four rookies in Cleveland’s starting lineup that night. He made his major league debut on June 26 and collected his first big league hit the following day — a two-run single against Seattle.
Ingle came to bat in the bottom of the seventh inning following the blunder but grounded out.
