It was not a particularly deep fly ball, but this was not a particularly normal regular-season game for Alex Rodriguez, who steadied himself at third base, poised to pounce toward home. His body, after 2,698 career games, could still cover plenty of ground. But the catch was made, the throw came in, and the play was close enough that the 40-year-old Rodriguez needed to dive, face-planting into the dirt and reaching, reaching, for the plate.
He needed to look up to the umpire to see him signal safe. And then he needed to scream, knowing that this was a critical run in a critical game in a critical home series that, so far, had gone completely awry for the Yankees.