I was watching a baseball game tonight (Giants vs Nationals) and in a key part of the game the Giants were able to get out of an inning by turning a double-play which ended up leading them to a 3-2 victory tonight. As I watched them turn the DP I thought to myself: what is the most compelling play (offensively and defensively) in baseball?
Offensively: I definitely think that a triple is the most exciting play in baseball. As a Mets fan, nothing can be more exciting then watching Jose Reyes go from home to third in the blink of an eye but I’d have to say when a batter is at the plate and they can work the pitch count and continuously foul off pitch after pitch and then either work out a walk or get a key hit to drive in a run after a 10-15 pitch at-bat that can at times break the pitchers spirit and they never can recover.
Defensively: I’d have to say either a strike-em out throw-em out double play. To me, that has the same effect as my offensive example above. A strike-em out throw-em out double play demoralizes the offensive team and completely takes them out of the inning.