Cardinals ask to check hitters bat after he hits a grand slam, a breakdown
What Happened
On September 1, 2021, in a Reds-Cardinals game, Cincinnati's Nick Castellanos came up with the bases loaded against Cardinals reliever J.A. Happ. Castellanos, who entered with a .500 mark against Happ and monster bases-loaded numbers, fouled off a couple pitches before hammering a 1-2 offering for a grand slam. The catch was that his bat had a chipped, broken cup at the top, and Cardinals manager Mike Shildt asked the umpires to check it. After a conference and a likely call to the league office, the crew ruled the bat wasn't corked or doctored, just chipped, so the home run stood. Castellanos couldn't reuse the bat, so he handed it to a kid in the stands.
Why This Matters
Bat-checking usually conjures pine tar and George Brett, but this was about a chipped barrel and player safety, a rule almost nobody invokes in real time. The umpires got it right by confirming the damage didn't help Castellanos and letting the slam count, then sidelining the bat going forward. Shildt's gambit was low-risk gamesmanship: if the bat got tossed before review, maybe the run comes off the board, and if not, no harm done. He admitted afterward he just wanted to capture the bat before the bat boy grabbed it. For Castellanos, it was another beating of Happ in a 2021 season that ended with an All-Star nod and a .309 average. The lasting image is the bat going to a thrilled young fan in the seats.
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Key Moments
Who / What Is Involved
Players: Nick Castellanos. Teams: Cardinals.
Key Terms Mentioned
Full Transcript
Click timestamps to jump to that momentCardinals are playing the Reds and out
of the near 1 000 breakdowns we've made
I don't think we've covered what we're
about to talk about so I'm excited about
it I'm interested I love learning new
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little picture on picture crime gonna
squeeze that one right past the glove to
put himself on first base that's a
runner on first the next batter Rookie
of the Year nominee favorite Jonathan
India where's John Boy media hats in his
post game press conferences he's he gets
a single Stevenson next up puts that one
like through that guy's glove and he
kind of just squeezed it too early and
that's a problem because now it's Bases
Loaded for a dude who's absolutely
lights out with the bases loaded 350
average 81 RBI six home runs and not
only that Castellanos is also lights out
against Jay Happ is 13 for 26 500
average so if you think you know what's
about to happen you probably do first
pitch low way fouled off Owen one blown
away again fouled off Owen two time to
bust him inside let's move it around
that's the ball they try to do it again
here on the 1-2 pitch misses his spot
too much of the plate castiano says I'll
just do what I do hits a homer a grand
slam puts the Reds up big and here's
what the video is all about the bat is
chipped at the top the cup it's all
broken up is that legal illegal can you
use a broken bat the Cardinals noticed
this before he even stepped in the Box
probably put it in their brain like
let's have them check this out check out
the camera guys shot here tracking the
ball like an absolute stud great job by
that camera operator if you know him
personally tell them I say good job
Shield comes out and he says can we
check that bat
can we check his bat
um says check is bad he says yeah check
his Bat it's broken on top so Nick's in
The Dugout saying what's going on as the
umps get together and the main ump is
going to say can you use a broken bat
they're trying to figure it out like
what's the rule here and then he says I
don't really know what to enforce
they're trying to figure it out I think
cuz he now is telling him we're like
well I don't think it's actually you
know a corked bat or broken to his
benefit I think he was just using a
chipped bat and then the home plate up
he says well hold up I'm pretty sure we
gotta check the bat out first so let's
bring it out hey can you bring that Bat
Out we've got to take a look at it and
they take a look at it and they're like
yeah you know what this wasn't for your
benefit it's just a broken bat but you
know you can't use it again
that's fine we're not everything's going
to stand I don't think you did this to
benefit you it's not corked it's not
extra pine tar it's just a little broken
but you know clear things up in the
future let's just not use it safety
concerns there is a specific rule about
how much your bat can be chipped on top
and how much it can't and I think maybe
that's a little more chip than it can
but casiano's is like well if I can't
use it you use it kid and those girls
are Overjoyed for them and look at that
kid's face that's what it's all about so
this kid should thank casiano's in the
Reds but he should also think Shield the
Cardinals manager because if he doesn't
say anything he doesn't get this bat now
he's got an awesome bat that kid's
excited Reds just making fans happy
non-stop they go tell Shield they're
like hey everything stands he's not
going to use the bat again it wasn't
messed up in his favor it was just
broken a little bit and she was like
well I don't know if it's an illegal bat
and you're saying it's illegal it
doesn't count can we just double check
this or like sure we'll call up New York
and this Zombie's like yeah is there a
rule on this is there a rule that it
says he can't do something like that and
he's just trying to get get it right
good job biomps it's a really it's a
really weird rule if you're not positive
on it call up and check they tell Shield
he accepts it he's like okay whatever
and then they're gonna walk over and
they're gonna clear it up with the Reds
and castianos a little bit and he just
has one question so everything stands
though they're like yep he says who was
the one who has to see it who was it the
manager that asked they're like yeah I
think it was the man the manager okay
all right well he's a new enemy now and
I'll remember that forever Phil because
he's like no no he was fine he's just
clarifying it's all good it's all good
and Casiano so all right thank you guys
appreciate it Bell says thanks guys love
it and then Jesse Winker in The Dugout
he says get out of here with that weak
foreign
get out of here I don't got a problem
with any of it at all I think everyone
handled this well castianos hits a grand
slam the umpires handled this properly
and even shill you know his post-game
press conference was right is it a
little bit of gamesmanship would he have
cared if they said you know what it was
an illegal bat he can't use it that home
run doesn't count would he have been a
little happy sure worth the risk didn't
go your way not gonna complain here's
his post game press conference about it
he speaks on why he has to check and
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them that was chipped you know it's just
by rule look I don't want to make it a
big deal guy at Homer with a with a chip
bat so good for him really ain't gonna
say anything initially but the bad boys
ran out there so quickly I just wanted I
didn't want the bat to get going I knew
there really wasn't any recourse you
know thought the crew handled it well
um just wanted to make sure we captured
the bat because he went out there so
quickly but it's really just a safety
issue with a cracked bat but put a good
swing on it and had a couple good swings
and you know that was that was it
nothing bigger than that