Adrian Beltre Drops To One Knee And Still Hits Home Run
Adrian Beltre is known for acting a little different at the plate. Beltre dances around wild pitches, falls to one knee on a whiffed swing, and he is usually chatting with the umpire and opposing catcher throughout his at-bats.
On Tuesday night in Oakland, Adrian Beltre entertained the crowd not only with his unusual tendencies, but with his pure strength.
In the top of the fourth inning, after Rangers’ right fielder Nomar Mazara had just launched a homer to center field, Beltre swung, fell to one knee while making contact with a 76 MPH off-speed pitch and managed to generate the strength to send the ball 429 feet over the center field fence.
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Rangers’ fans get to see Adrian’s antics on a nightly basis. Beltre is a little different when it comes to his approach at the plate. Actually, Beltre plays baseball different than anyone in the league.
According to ESPN, Adrian Beltre has 18 years of MLB experience and he’s 37-years-old. For those who watch Adrian on a nightly basis, it is well-known that his age never shows. Beltre has the strongest arm on the Rangers’ team, and he is arguably the strongest bat on the team as well.
Tuesday night’s AL West divisional matchup between the Texas Rangers and the Oakland Athletics was full of surprises and out-of-the-ordinary moments.
The game was tight throughout its entirety. The pitchers for each team were teetering on absolute failure and both offenses were producing in large clumps with many zeroes on the board in-between innings.
Adrian Beltre’s unique, proposal-style home run in Oakland probably wasn’t even the biggest headline of the game.
The Rangers rallied in the top of the ninth inning to take a 4-3 lead over the Athletics, and the game looked well-in-hand with the Rangers’ closer taking the mound to finish off the Athletics lineup.
However, Athletics’ outfielder, Khris Davis had a different outcome in mind.
In the bottom of the ninth inning with the bases loaded, Davis made great contact on a low fastball and ended the game in a walk-off grand slam. The home run from Davis was his third of the night.
Adrian Beltre’s display of strength was definitely one of the more entertaining moments of the night. How Adrian can generate enough bat speed while falling to one knee is beyond any mere mortal. The strength of Beltre is incredible.
Beltre’s strength is expected though; ask any of his teammates and they will tell you that Beltre puts in the work and his in-game masterpieces are a direct result.
Adrian Beltre is the veteran and leader that all the players on the Rangers’ roster look up to and admire. Beltre has a “tough love” type of personality; Adrian’s not afraid to lecture a teammate when he sees complacency or laziness.
In a report by Fox Sports, Beltre was shown staring down Rangers’ shortstop, Elvis Andrus after Andrus slowly trotted to first base when his thought-to-be home run fell short of the fence.
Beltre is one of those guys who gives out criticism, but is able to take criticism as well. Good luck, though, finding a moment in a game when Beltre is deserving of any kind of critique.
When watching the Rangers, Beltre’s happiness is contagious. Adrian loves playing the game of baseball at the highest level and the man shows it everyday. The Rangers’ hall-of-fame-worthy third baseman is always having fun and laughing with everyone he comes in contact with.
Beltre is certainly a perfectionist, but he realizes that baseball is just a game and that his role is to be a leader for his team.
Adrian Beltre leads his team with a competitive mentality, but he realizes that keeping the morale positive is important for the competitive nature to thrive.
[Photo by Ronald Martinez/Getty Images]
