Jays, Cards marvel at Coghlan's home-plate leap: 'It's like I saw a unicorn'
It happened right in front of them. In plain sight. And yet the Toronto Blue Jays couldn't believe their eyes.
Was it the result of arriving in St. Louis bleary eyed at 7 a.m.? Were they staring at a mirage conceived after so many things have gone wrong through the first three weeks?
Make no mistake - what Chris Coghlan did Wednesday night at Busch Stadium was legendary. Here was a 31-year-old veteran catapulting himself over future Hall of Fame catcher Yadier Molina and somersaulting onto the plate to score the go-ahead run in the seventh inning. A move more commonly witnessed during gymnastics competition was on full display on a baseball diamond.
The acrobatic display had baseball understandably buzzing, and even after having time to digest it all, the Blue Jays - and even the Cardinals - still couldn't believe their eyes.
Marco Estrada. It's like I saw a unicorn.
John Gibbons. He got up there, didn't he? You've got to win that game because that's what made it worthwhile. You probably don't see that for 100 years.
Chris Coghlan. Even though it's happening really fast, the last three steps are really slow in your mind. Those are all the thoughts that I had. It's like, 'OK, run him over. Oh wait, I don't know, he's in front of the plate. He's down, maybe I can jump, so let's jump.' Kind of like that.
Jarrod Saltalamacchia. That's the last thing I'd be thinking about (as a catcher). You're getting ready to catch it, I'd be thinking this guy is going to blow me up because I'm right in the baseline.
Mike Matheny. Guys do what they have to do. Impressive play.
Marco Estrada. It's just something that doesn't happen - you might not see that again. I'm glad I saw it, I'm going to remember it forever. It was awesome.
(Photo courtesy: Action Images)
Chris Coghlan. It was going to be an ugly fall because I just didn't have enough momentum going forward so it helped that I hit Yadi. It kicked my feet up so it wasn't that bad of a landing.
John Gibbons. I don't think you can top it, man. I don't remember ever seeing a better play than that.
Matt Bowman. It seems like the kind of play you see in the movies or think about doing as a kid. At the last second I realized the timing of it looked like it might be a dangerous play. Given the option of him scoring or Yadi getting hurt I'll take him scoring every time.
Chris Coghlan. I'm just glad I didn't break my neck.
(Quotes courtesy: Sportsnet, ESPN, MLB.com, St. Louis Post-Dispatch)
(Video courtesy: MLB.com)