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One of baseball’s strangest situations led to a controversial out call at first base in Sunday afternoon’s matchup between the Los Angeles Angels and the New York Mets.
Mets star outfielder Juan Soto hit a grounder to first base when Nolan Schanuel, and the outfielder had the ball trapped in the membrane of his glove: the oddity in question.
Schanuel was trying to turn a double play, but after realizing he couldn’t get the ball out of his glove, he decided to try to get Soto to first base to ensure an out.
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Juan Soto of the New York Mets reacts after hitting an RBI single during the fifth inning against the Pittsburgh Pirates on Opening Day at Citi Field in New York City on March 26, 2026. (Ishika Samant/Getty Images)
However, Soto was reserving the ball down the first base line, and Schanuel was forced to throw his glove, with the ball still in the net, to pitcher Jack Kochanowicz covering the bag. It was a very close play, but the referee signaled that Soto was out despite the madness that occurred a few seconds into the top of the third inning.
But while Soto believed he was safe overall, the Mets bench shouted down the field that Kochanowicz never fully secured Schanuel’s glove, moving it as Soto crossed first base.
No one would have blamed Mets manager Carlos Mendoza for challenging the call on the field, but he told the umpires to move on, an interesting move considering what happened the previous game on Saturday night.
Mendoza was criticized for not contesting a call in Saturday’s 4-3 loss to the Angels, which could have seen a different outcome considering Los Angeles scored a decisive run.
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New York Mets manager Carlos Mendoza returns to the dugout after a pitching change during the seventh inning against the Washington Nationals at Citi Field in New York City on April 29, 2026. (Heather Khalifa/Getty Images)
While Jo Adell had a hit to right center field in the bottom of the first inning with two outs, Mets right fielder Austin Slater threw a seed to Bo Bichette at third base, and he tagged Jorge Soler to end the inning. But even more importantly, Bichette’s tag on Soler was placed before the Angels scored the run in the replay.
But Mendoza never questioned the decision, and in the end, it hurt his team.
“[The replay room] “I lost it,” Mendoza told reporters after the game when asked if he had not challenged. “We called him and he missed it. [Replay analyst] harrison [Friedland] He’s one of the best at his job and, you know, it obviously ends up being a great play when you lose by one run.
“I also think we had opportunities and we didn’t take advantage of them.”
Fortunately for the Mets, this lack of challenge didn’t hurt them in the end, defeating the Angels, 5-1, to move to 12-22 on the season.
Los Angeles Angels first baseman Nolan Schanuel runs to second base in the first inning against the New York Mets at Angel Stadium in Anaheim, California, on May 2, 2026. (Kirby Lee/Image Images)
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It’s been a rough start to the 2026 campaign for New York, a team many expected to compete for a playoff spot. Instead, they have recently endured a 12-game losing streak and are now fighting to get back to at least .500.
The Mets need some things on the diamond to go their way, but not challenging reviewable plays like these is one way they could get the momentum swinging in their favor.
