With his high school team trailing 11-3 in the sixth inning of Friday’s district championship game, Marion Local (Ohio) center fielder Griffin Bruns took matters into his own hands.
Literally.
After a bloop hit from Fort Recovery’s Caden Grisez landed in shallow center, just past the outstretched arms of Marion Local’s second baseman and shortstop, Bruns picked up the ball to see Grisez nearing second base.
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With both middle infielders pulled out of position by the fly ball, no one covered the bag as Bruns jogged toward the infield. Grisez saw the Marion Local third baseman running to second, and realized he had that base open as well. By the time he got there, the Marion Local catcher was running to try and cover third, leaving home plate uncovered.
“Right out of the box I kind of jogged because I honestly thought they might catch it, the shortstop in the outfield. I saw it drop so then I made my way to first and saw no one at second, so I’m like, ‘Alright, I’ll take a double I guess,'” Grisez told The Athletic.
“And then the third baseman rotates, no one’s at third, I’m like, ‘I guess I’ll go three,’ and then I see no one at home but my third base coach was holding me, but I just made a business decision.”
In a flash, Bruns leaped into action, realizing his only hope of getting Grisez out was a miraculous tag.
“I went home and I looked to my side and could see him coming but he’s just really fast,” said Grisez.
Did a center fielder just tag someone out at home plate?
This high school baseball highlight is one you need to see to believe 🤯
🎥 @WOSNScorespic.twitter.com/bikdlWMHH5
— The Athletic (@TheAthletic) May 25, 2024
As Grisez touched third to head home, the center fielder Bruns was in the spot regularly occupied by a shortstop. With his hat long-fallen off, he turned on the jets to track a sprinting Grisez down.
With nothing but inches to home, Bruns and Grisez both dived for the plate. Landing in a heap under a cloud of dust, the umpire paused for a dramatic second before calling Grisez out.
“By the time I got close to home plate, I was giving it everything left in the tank,” Grisez said.
The official scoring on the play would be a triple for Grisez with an 8-unassisted putout. Not your typical sequence, to say the least.
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Grisez found solace in that his team held on for the win, which gave them their first district championship since 2016. Despite being on the losing end of the game’s viral moment, he was the big winner in the contest, as he pitched 5 1/3 innings and struck out seven batters to earn the win.
He joked that the video made him look slow, but that’s more of a testament to Bruns’ speed. The junior Grisez soaked up the attention from the play, calling it “wild” to see himself on SportsCenter, but added it will give him some extra motivation against Marion Local next season.
And he certainly has no regrets over his “business decision.”
“I would do it again 10 out of 10 times,” he said with a laugh, before catching himself. “Actually, if it was a close game, I probably wouldn’t have went. If it’s 4-4 in the top of the seventh, I’d probably sit at third.”
(Photo: Jeff Haynes / Getty Images)