Giants fans have become accustomed to watching catcher Patrick Bailey throw out some of MLB's speediest runners on the base paths this season, so it's no surprise his manager Gabe Kapler had high expectations for the rookie's biggest test yet.
But rather than throwing out the league's stolen base leader in the eighth inning Sunday, Bailey's errant throw to third got past Casey Schmitt and allowed Atlanta Braves speedster Ronald Acuña Jr. to score the game's tying run.
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"... I think it's worth calling out that Pat Bailey has just been dominant with runners on the bases, and in that moment, you almost want Acuña to try to run," Kapler told reporters after the Giants' eventual 4-3 win. "You have a chance to throw him out at third base -- just the throw got away from [Bailey] a little bit.
"It's just a moment to call out all the other good work he did. That was a tough moment for us, obviously, but man, we trust him back there."
The moment certainly would have been even tougher had San Francisco lost the game at Truist Park, as the Giants came into Sunday having dropped 10 of their previous 13 games. Instead, Joc Pederson drew a go-ahead RBI walk in the ninth to avoid a sweep by the Braves before San Francisco takes on the NL wild-card leading Phillies in Philadelphia.
San Francisco Giants
Bailey's teammates picked him up after his rare miscue, and the error certainly isn't weighing heavily on the Giants' conscience as their push for the MLB playoffs persists thanks largely in part to their rookie backstop.
Bailey currently leads all MLB catchers in Defensive Runs Saved with 16 and has been described by Giants president of baseball operations Farhan Zaidi as the best defensive catcher in the game. The 24-year-old's lightning-fast pop time has broken Statcast records, allowing him to throw out an NL-best 21 runners this season and earning the confidence of his coaches -- even against Acuña and his 55 stolen bases.
That number is 56 now, but the Giants' faith in Bailey behind the plate hasn't shifted one bit.