On Tuesday night, the Albuquerque Isotopes, Triple-A affiliate of the Colorado Rockies, scored three runs on a bases-loaded walk during their game against El Paso at Isotopes Park. The unusual play took place on Jackie Robinson Day, which is celebrated across affiliated baseball.
In the bottom of the sixth inning, Albuquerque loaded the bases through two walks and an error. Rockies prospect Ryan Ritter faced a full count with two outs before drawing a walk. Austin Nola advanced from third to home plate as expected after ball four was called.
However, what followed deviated from standard play. As El Paso catcher Luis Campusano returned the ball to pitcher Omar Cruz, Aaron Schunk sprinted from third base and stole home. This type of aggressive baserunning is reminiscent of Jackie Robinson’s well-known steal of home in Game 1 of the 1955 World Series.
Meanwhile, Jordan Beck, who had started on first base, continued running around second and headed for third. Cruz attempted to throw Beck out at third but overthrew his target. Beck then got up quickly and ran home to score another run.
The sequence resulted in three runs scoring on a single walk—an uncommon event in professional baseball.
“Robinson tallied 197 stolen bases over his 10-year career with Brooklyn. It may not have been planned, but the Isotopes' three-run walk seemed a fitting tribute to the icon on his day,” wrote Brendan Samson for MiLB.com.
The play contributed to Albuquerque’s 7-2 win over El Paso.
