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Osuna shakes off balk to close out big win
- Updated: October 2, 2016
BOSTON — Roberto Osuna nearly found his place in Toronto-sports infamy on Saturday night with an ill-timed balk that could have cost the Blue Jays their season. Instead, the Blue Jays — and their 21-year-old closer — bounced back in a 4-3 victory over Boston at Fenway Park.
Toronto was clinging to a one-run lead in the eighth inning when Jackie Bradley Jr. stepped to the plate with two outs and a runner on third. The count was 3-0 when catcher Russell Martin called for a cut fastball. Osuna made one small initial move to go into his windup, but then changed his mind about what pitch he wanted to throw.
Osuna stopped his motion and tried to step off the rubber, but by then it was too late. Home-plate umpire Quinn Wolcott signaled for the balk, and Mookie Betts was sent from third to home as the Red Sox tied the game at 3. For a few moments, it looked like the Blue Jays were headed for a disaster.
“I changed my mind about the pitch,” Osuna said through an interpreter after the game. “Russ called for a cutter and I wanted to throw something …
