It’s a question that we’ll probably shout to the baseball heavens for as long as we watch this game. Why do players slide head-first into first base? Or hand-first, as the case really is.
Marlins second baseman Dee Gordon, voted to the NL All-Star starting lineup by the fans, dislocated his left thumb sliding head-first into first base during the seventh inning of Saturday’s 14-3 win over the Reds. The good news is that Gordon beat out the throw to first for an infield hit, resulting in a 3-for-4 day at the plate. The bad news obviously is that Gordon figures to be out for a while with an injury.
Gordon has a dislocated left thumb #Marlins
— clarkspencer (@clarkspencer) July 11, 2015
Even if players insist on diving into first base, convinced it helps them beat a throw — when basic science or common sense shows running through the bag gets to the bag faster — there’s a right way and wrong way to approach the bag with their hands when sliding.
MLB Network showed a highlight from the June 12 Fox Sports Florida telecast during which Marlins third base coach Lenny Harris warned Gordon to hit the bag with the heels of his hands, rather than his fingertips. Otherwise, he was going to dislocate his fingers one day. Unfortunately for Gordon, Harris turned out to be prophetic and probably wanted to bop the second baseman on the head with a Nerf bat for getting hurt when it could have been prevented.
Gordon was having a tremendous season for the Marlins, batting .333 and leading MLB with 119 hits. He also has 33 stolen bases this season. Now Gordon joins Giancarlo Stanton as Marlins All-Star starters who are sidelined due to injury.
But as MLB.com’s Joe Frisaro reports, the Marlins said Gordon doesn’t have a broken thumb, nor does there appear to be any ligament damage. So perhaps this injury won’t be quite as bad as feared. And maybe Gordon has learned a lesson about how he slides into a base.
UPDATE: Rockies second baseman DJ LeMahieu will replace Gordon as the NL’s starting second baseman, per manager Bruce Bochy. Teammate Troy Tulowitzki will take Gordon’s spot on the NL All-Star roster.
Bochy said LeMahieu replaces Gordon in All-Star lineup because he won players vote. Injury does mean Craw/Panik will likely play together.
— Alex Pavlovic (@AlexPavlovic) July 11, 2015
