The Annotated This Day in Baseball History

Continuing from yesterday on stories that are so bizarre they stretch the bounds of plausibility, we have this one which is really, really bizarre but is at least fairly recent so maybe remember it. Plus I have video evidence. Randy Johnson was pitching in a Spring Training game against the Giants and in the seventh was facing Jeff Kent. Johnson would up and delivered the pitch, Kent prepared to swing while catcher Rod Barajas was ready to catch.

Except Johnson's pitch never arrived. The pitch collided with a dove on the way to home plate and the dove , well, exploded is just about the only word for it. The velocity of the pitch drove the bird over Barajas' head and it landed a few feet behind him. Kent picked the bird up and mockingly offered it to Johnson who was not amused, later saying he didn't find the incident at all funny. I guess the Unit is a member of Audubon Society.

Anyway, the game soon resumed as normal, leaving the bird to nothing but a memory. But, least you think that this is all some elaborate pre-April Fool's Day joke, I provide you with the best kind of evidence, video.

# posted by Richard Barbieri @ 9:00 AM