Strange coincidence...

[Tenorman]

I guess some things just come due at the same time...

Last night, in the third inning, the Blue Jays turned just the 4th triple play in franchise history against the Royals at Kauffman Stadium. One minute it was two on and none out and not looking good for Kyle Drabek... one pitch later he was out of the jam and out of the inning. Adam Lind snagged a hard liner by Eric Hosmer, stepped on first to double off Yuniesky Betancourt, then threw a strike to Escobar at second to catch Alex Gordon, who got just a bit too aggressive with his baserunning and was one step too far from the bag.

The neat thing is that the last time the Jays turned a triple play was in 1979... and the last time the Royals hit into one was also 1979.

[ian2813]

Wow. So the until this year, the Blue Jays had turned all three triple plays in their history in their first three years of existence? What are the odds of that?

[Tenorman]

Wow. So the until this year, the Blue Jays had turned all three triple plays in their history in their first three years of existence? What are the odds of that?

Yep! And from what I heard, they actually turned their second and third within the same month in 1979.

[ol' aches and pains]

One minute it was two on and none out and not looking good for Kyle Drabek... one pitch later he was out of the jam and out of the inning.

If there's anything better than a triple play, it's an inning-ending triple play.

[Mr. Laser Beam]

^ Aren't all triple plays, by definition, inning-ending?

[Rich the Giants fan]

If there's anything better than a triple play, it's an inning-ending triple play.

The only triple play I've seen in person was in 2008 when Keiichi Yabu came into a game for SF with the bases loaded and threw 1 pitch resulting in a triple play. How many times do you see a guy throw 1 pitch and get 3 outs? All told he threw 3 perfect innings that day, retiring all seven batters he faced, while taking all of 16 pitches to do it.

[Bothrops Atrox]

^ Aren't all triple plays, by definition, inning-ending?

That was his point. Triple plays are so exciting because you go from being in extreme-trouble to completely out-of-trouble in one play.