Jake Bird’s defining moment? Check this out.
On June 6 at Coors Field, the Rockies’ right-handed reliever entered the game in the top of the sixth inning to face the Mets. Starter Antonio Senzatela had walked Pete Alonso and Jeff McNeil to open the inning. Bird did himself no favors by plunking Tyrone Taylor to load the bases.
Intense, focused, and taking a deep breath between each pitch, Bird proceeded to strike out Brett Baty looking at an 81.5 mph, 1-2 curveball. He fanned Francisco Alverez with an 85.6 mph, 3-2 slider. Then he completed his mission by getting Ronny Mauricio to swing over the top of an 0-2, 80.