Baseball

O’s base-running gaffe turns HR into single

Lopez hits ball out of park, but passes teammate on base path

Chris Gardner / AP

Angels center fielder Darin Erstad tries to catch a blast by Javy Lopez of the Orioles on Sunday. The ball went over the wall, but Lopez was credited with an RBI single and called out on the play after he passed teammate Miguel Tejada on the basepath.

updated 5:53 p.m. ET April 16, 2006

BALTIMORE - It might have been the longest single in Javy Lopez’s career. Without question, it was the most disappointing.

Lopez hit a pitch from John Lackey into the seats at Camden Yards on Sunday, but a confusing series of events caused him to pass teammate Miguel Tejada on the bases. Lopez was ruled out at second base, a key play in the Baltimore Orioles’ 9-3 loss to the Los Angeles Angels.

The base-running gaffe occurred in the second inning. After Tejada singled, Lopez hit a drive to center that sent Darin Erstad leaping at the wall to make the catch. When Erstad tumbled to the ground — his leg twisted awkwardly underneath him — it was uncertain whether he caught the ball.

By the time Erstad showed his empty glove, Tejada had retreated from second base and was passed by Lopez, who was credited with an RBI single and called out for passing the runner.

Baltimore manager Sam Perlozzo said second-base umpire Gerry Davis told him that third-base umpire Brian Gorman called the hit a home run. Lopez saw things differently.

“Me and Tejada were looking at the umpire the whole time, wondering what kind of call he was going to make. We were wondering if the ball was out or (Erstad) got it in his glove,” Lopez said. “One umpire called an out, so obviously Tejada went back to first base. Then the other umpire said the ball was out. But by the time he made the call, I had already passed Tejada.”

Lopez said he had never been involved in a play of that nature. Perlozzo put the blame on both players, although in fairness to Tejada and Lopez, it was unclear if Erstad had the ball in his glove.

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“I think we all know you can’t pass the runner. ... There really was no reason to run back to first because the guy was laying on the ground not moving,” Perlozzo said. “And Javy doesn’t need to pass him. It was just a botched play.”

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By rule, Lopez was called out at second base.

Baltimore lost handily, but Perlozzo wondered if things might have been different if the home run had counted and if the Orioles had effectively prevented a double steal that enabled Los Angeles to take a 2-1 lead in the third.

“We made a couple of mistakes that cost us,” Perlozzo said. “We could have come out of that five innings up 3-2 or 4-2 and it would have been a whole different ballgame. But it unraveled after that.”