A winning clubhouse is a happy one, even if it means making light of a teammate's "hidden" misfortune.
The Los Angeles Dodgers' Juan Uribe fell victim to the rare hidden-ball trick at third base in the fourth inning of the Dodgers' 5-0 victory over the Tampa Bay Rays on Saturday at Dodger Stadium.
It happened this way: A.J. Ellis popped out to center field off right-hander Roberto Hernandez, Andre Ethier tagged to score, Uribe tagged to third and Skip Schumaker tagged to second. However, Rays first baseman James Loney caught Wil Myers' throw from the outfield near the mound, flipped it to shortstop Yunel Escobar, who tossed the ball to third baseman Evan Longoria. Longoria stood behind third base, out of Uribe's sight, and waited for Uribe to lift his foot off the bag.
When it happened, Longoria placed the tag on Uribe's thigh. Umpire Angel Hernandez called Uribe out on the 8-3-6-5 double play.
"I just kind of waited there, and he barely took his foot off the base and I tagged him," Longoria told MLB.com. "Thankfully, Angel Hernandez was right on the play as well. He kind of stuck with the ball and made the call."
"It's something you can laugh about now," Dodgers manager Don Mattingly said. "Honestly, it's really something you should learn from. It's a mistake you don't want to make in a big game or a game that it can cost you one way or another."
The Dodgers found a way to laugh about it, all right. Teammates presented Uribe with a gift after the game: A shoe taped to a base.
Repercussions of the hidden ball trick! Haha Uribe is the best pic.twitter.com/k6k2tofcgW
— Kenley Jansen (@kenleyjansen74) August 10, 2013
El pie en la base para q no te metan out pic.twitter.com/1Xcq52uQue
— yasielpuig (@YasielPuig) August 10, 2013
Los Angeles won its second consecutive game over Tampa Bay and has lost only three times since after the All-Star break. When the good times are rolling, even the bad appears funny.
Expect Uribe to keep his attention sharp next time he stands on third.
You can follow Andrew Astleford on Twitter @aastleford or email him at aastleford@gmail.com.
