Winn, a 21-year-old middle infielder, made his MLB debut on Friday against the New York Mets. In the fifth inning, he hit a high chopper to third base and used his speed to beat out the throw for an infield hit. Mets first baseman Pete Alonso laid out to catch the ball, then was expected to throw the ball to the Cardinals’ dugout to save the souvenir.
So what did Vulgar Pete do?
NO SHOT PETE ALONSO JUST LAUNCHED MASYN WINN’S 1ST CAREER HIT INTO THE STANDS pic.twitter.com/VNEv1P59uJ
— Addison (@YankeeWRLD) August 19, 2023
The full explanation, via SNY:
“I feel horrible. I feel awful. I know it sounds stupid, but it’s just a bad brain fart. I know throwing the ball in the stands, that robs him of a really special moment. I feel really bad thinking on my first hit and just getting the ball thrown back to the dugout. I feel awful. I feel like a piece of crap.
“In the heat of the moment, you kind of just get lost. I got up from trying to make a play, the umpire said, ‘Hey we’re going to try to switch this ball out,’ so I’m like ‘OK, I’m going to do what I always do.’ I always throw the ball in the stands, but I’ll never throw the ball in the stands again. I’m just going to roll every ball to the dugout when they’re going to switch it out.
“That’s a really bad mistake and it’s completely unintentional. I feel horrible about it. I feel really bad. I apologized to him when I was at second after the forceout. I’m really sorry and I’m going to try to talk to him and get him something for tomorrow as an apology. It’s stupid, it’s a really bad look and I feel like an idiot. I feel terrible. I feel really bad.”