It’s not very often that you see one triple play in a baseball game, let alone two, but that’s just what Penn State did in their game against Michigan State on Friday.
The Associated Press had a summary of the events that aligned perfectly for the impressive feat to take place.
“In the fourth inning with runners on first and second, shortstop Jim Haley caught Blaise Salter’s liner, stepped on second and then threw to first for a 6-3 triple play,” the AP wrote. “With runners again on first and second in the eighth, Jimmy Pickens lined out to second baseman Taylor Skerpon, who started a 4-6-3 triple play.”
These triple plays were actually the second and third that the Nittany Lions have executed this season.
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J4V3-41pvNs%5D
That game was the second in NCAA Division I history to feature two triple plays, with Gonzaga being the first to do it in 2006. Despite the two triple plays, Penn State still lost to the Trojans 4-2.
It’s happened only once in MLB history, and as Cut4 points out, Penn State’s feat has a lot in common with the lone MLB game.
The Minnesota Twins pulled it off against the Boston Red Sox at Fenway Park on July 17, 1990. Though the way they played out was different — both were 5-4-3 triple plays for the Twins — they occurred in the fourth and eighth innings, and the Twins also ended up losing the game.
