When I got home from Thursday afternoon’s game at Coors Field, I fired up a YouTube video featuring Nolan Arenado’s greatest defensive plays.
I wanted to compare Arenado’s sensational play in the second inning Thursday to the other sublime moments in his career. I quickly realized that it’s impossible to rank them. There are simply too many dives in the dirt, bare-handed grabs and lasers across the diamond to consider them all.
Still, the “tarp play” on April 14, 2015, stands above all others. This is what I wrote at the time:
“Arenado, a two-time Gold Glove third baseman who turns 24 on Thursday, channeled his inner Derek Jeter against the Giants on Tuesday night at AT&T Park.