Marcell Ozuna learned the hard way that honesty is not always the best policy. (Photo Credit: John Hefti-USA TODAY Sports)
Marcell Ozuna learned the hard way that honesty is not always the best policy. (Photo Credit: John Hefti-USA TODAY Sports)

WATCH: Cardinals outfielder turns down free base, grounds into double play on next pitch


by - Senior Writer -

CHICAGO — With brutal honestly that a young George Washington would be in awe of, St. Louis Cardinals left fielder Marcell Ozuna turned down a free base that was being offered to him by an umpire. However, perhaps as proof that there is no karma in baseball, Ozuna paid the price for his honesty and grounded into an inning-ending double play on the very next pitch.

An inside pitch thrown by Chicago Cubs starting pitcher Jose Quintana in the fifth inning of Sunday's Cardinals-Cubs matchup grazed Ozuna's bat on a modest checked swing. The audible contact evidently made home-plate umpire Ted Barrett think that the ball hit Ozuna, rather than Ozuna's bat.

As a result, Barrett signaled for a hit-by-pitch call, which allowed Ozuna to then take first base. But, with a brutally honest act that the likes of American sports may have never seen before, Ozuna informed Barrett that the pitch was fouled, and he continued with his at-bat.

Similar to the rarely seen act of walking in cricket, in which a batsman admits to a wicket that is not called by walking off the pitch, Ozuna opted to carry forth with his plate appearance, despite being offered first base.

Unfortunately for Ozuna, on the very next pitch, he grounded into an inning-ending 5-4-3 double play. Therefore, Ozuna might want to reconsider his sporting ethics in the future because leaving runners stranded after turning down a free base is not ideal.

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