The Colorado Rockies on Sunday ended a six-game losing streak with a 2-1 win over the visiting Seattle Mariners in 10 innings. The Rockies, however, appeared to win via walk-off home run in the bottom of the ninth, but Jacob Stallings' double/possible homer was ruled on review to be an out thanks to fan interference.
With two outs in the home half of the ninth in a scoreless game, Stallings drove a first-pitch fastball from Ryne Stanek deep to left. Out in left, Seattle's Dylan Moore attempted to make a play on Stallings' drive, but it wound up bouncing off a fan's glove and back onto the field of play. Umpires initially called it a double, but a crew-chief challenge sent it to the review booth. The review, to say the least, did not go the way Rockies hoped:
What should have been a walk-off home run for Jacob Stallings was called an out due to fan interference pic.twitter.com/yL9Pj6yGTo
— Talkin’ Baseball (@TalkinBaseball_) April 21, 2024
It appeared that the ball, left unimpeded, would have cleared the fence, but at the same time, it looked like Moore had a potential "robbery" play on it. Thus, fan interference was the ruling on review, and Stallings' would-be walk-off homer was instead a procedural third out of the frame.
Fortunately for Colorado – and what may be a baseball variant of "ball don't lie" – it got its walk-off after all, on Ryan McMahon's infield single in the 10th inning. The 34-year-old Stallings, however, missed out on what would've been his first homer of the season, 25th of his career, and fourth of the walk-off variety.
The Rockies entered this game, the first of a Sunday doubleheader, with the worst record in the National League and their worst start through the first 20 games of the season in franchise history. The loss dropped the Mariners to one game below .500 at 10-11.
