When a Hall of Famer pays you respect, you tend to take notice.
East Carolina baseball alum Alec Burleson made an amazing sliding catch on a pop-up for the St. Louis Cardinals during Wednesday’s game. Hall of Fame manager Tony LaRussa was a guest on FanDuel Sports Network and, according to MLB.com, was amazed at the play.
“Whoaaaa, look at Larry Walker,” La Russa called out, referring to the seven-time Gold Glover and member of the 2004 Cardinals team that reached the World Series. “That’s not Larry Walker?”
The Cubs beat the Cardinals, 8-0, but nobody will likely remember the game. They will, however, remember the play.
“I think I’ve probably put in more work outside the nine innings than I have during the games,” said Burleson, according to MLB.com. “I’ve done that with the early work with [Cardinals Hall of Famer and former coach] Willie [McGee] over the last few years and then [Jon Jay] and Stubby [Clapp] this year. There’s just a lot of extra work that goes into it that not everybody sees.
“But there were plays [in past years] that I feel like I could have made and didn’t. Now, it’s coming together for me this year. But it takes a lot more work and effort to play three different positions — and not just play them, but also be able to hold your own out there.”
Photo credit: Alec Burleson (AP photo)
Check out Pirate Radio
Website | Facebook | X (formerly Twitter) | Instagram | YouTube | Apple Podcasts | Spotify