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Athletics outfielder Denzel Clarke made the catch of the year, robbing Angels first baseman Nolan Schanuel of a sure home run in the first inning.
Schanuel got all of a pitch from A’s starter Grant Holman and sent it to deep center field, seemingly destined to easily clear the wall.
That was until Clarke climbed the wall and made the miraculous catch with his glove that nearly sent him flying over the outfield wall, before saving himself and dropping back down to the field.
Clarke then celebrated by flexing as the A’s broadcasters were both stunned by the impressive grab.
The camera then panned to Holman, who was stunned himself with his hands over his head.
Statcast projected the ball hit by Schanuel had gone 398 feet.
It was the second incredible catch Clarke has made in a game in as many weeks after he made a home run-robbing snag against the Blue Jays at Rogers Centre in late May.
Alejandro Kirk had hit a ball 407 feet that Clarke scaled the wall to catch in the bottom of the fourth inning on that occasion.
He even turned around to look at the replay on the video board.
“I was trying to just check it out,” Clarke said at the time. “I always love seeing if my route was good or if I timed it up well. Everything came together on that catch, so I was super happy about it.”
The catch on Monday came in Clarke’s 16th major league game with the Athletics after he was called up from Triple-A earlier this season.
Clarke had entered Monday’s game with a .244 batting average, along with one homer and three RBIs.
He was taken in the 2021 MLB Draft in the fourth round after playing college ball at Cal State Northridge.
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