The York (Penn.) Revolution is part of an independent minor league separate from Major League Baseball. Doesn’t sound like they would be part of anything worthy of national headlines, right? However, following a night that gave us an unforgettable Derek Jeter performance, York, PA. gave us another memorable night that will be forever engrained within our memory of baseball folklore.
Down 0-1 in the 8th inning, York center fielder Sean Smith blasted a game tying home run, but slipped round first base, tearing his ACL. According to reports, he refused to let anyone help him round the bases, therefore he hopped on one foot the rest of the 270 feet to home plate.
What [Mark] Mason [York Manager] was more certain of, though, was the spark his ballclub got from Smith’s gutty circling of the bases on one leg to tie the game. The rules would have allowed Mason to replace him with a pinch runner, but Smith was adamant about touching them all.
“That was one of the most emotional things I have ever seen in a game,” Mason said. “That was a clutch home run. That gave us an emotional lift to stay in there and keep battling.”
The Revolution won the game 3-2 in extra innings, taking a 2-1 lead in the five-game Atlantic League Freedom Division Championship Series.
The shot was Smith’s 8th homer of the year. He’s batted .243.
P.S. — The last time we saw something even similar to this type of situation was with these softball players:
Josh Helmuth is the editor of CraveOnline Sports.
