SI

Nebraska Baseball Shocked Pepperdine With a Hidden Ball Trick

Tim Capurso

A Nebraska player tags out a Pepperdine baserunner.
A Nebraska player tags out a Pepperdine baserunner. / Screengrab Twitter @HuskerBaseball

The Nebraska Cornhuskers baseball team pulled out one of the oldest tricks in the book during its 11-4 win over the Pepperdine Waves on Wednesday. In the bottom of the third inning, sophomore righthander TJ Coats struck out the first two batters to start the frame, then walked Pepperdine outfielder Joe Cardinale. With the count even at 1-and-1, Coats and Nebraska first baseman Tyler Stone decided to pull some trickery out of the bag.

Coats checked the runner with a throw to first out of an actual pickoff move, then Stone faked the return throw back to the mound as Cardinale looked away for a moment. When Cardinale took his lead off first, Stone surprised him with a tag, and Nebraska had the final out of the inning.

Check out the video of Nebraska's skullduggery.

While Stone's execution was almost perfect, Coats, who appeared to be standing on the mound without the ball, likely could have been called for a balk.

But, fortunately for the Cornhuskers, Cardinale, Pepperdine's first base coach, and apparently, the umpiring crew, were not paying close enough attention.

Nebraska earned its ninth win of the season with the victory, while Pepperdine fell to 4-16.

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Tim Capurso
TIM CAPURSO

Tim Capurso is a staff writer on the Breaking and Trending News team at Sports Illustrated. Prior to joining SI in November 2023, he wrote for RotoBaller and ClutchPoints, where he was the lead editor for MLB, college football and NFL coverage. A lifelong Yankees and Giants fan, Capurso grew up just outside New York City and now lives near Philadelphia. When he's not writing, he enjoys reading, exercising and spending time with his family, including his three-legged cat Willow, who, unfortunately, is an Eagles fan.

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