Over the years, several wildlife creatures have invaded Major League Baseball stadiums as uninvited participants in America's pastime. Geese, rabbits, pigeons, cats and even snakes have appeared on the baseball diamond mid-game. Plus, who could forget when Hall of Fame pitcher Randy Johnson accidentally obliterated a bird with a fastball?
Videos by Wide Open Country
Yet another wild animal made its way into the spotlight on Monday during an MLB game. This time, an evasive squirrel gave the grounds crew a run for their money during a matchup between the Tigers and Orioles.
According to a video shared by MLB, a black squirrel ran onto the field at Comerica Park in the sixth inning of the Tigers game.
Although the squirrel was on a baseball diamond, it looked more like Barry Sanders on the gridiron as it juked out several grounds crew members who tried to capture it. In one shot, the ground crew and some baseball players managed to corner it before it got free again.
It took the entire Tigers grounds crew and Orioles outfielder Leody Taveras to remove this squirrel from the field
Home plate umpire Bill Miller even asked the crowd for a round of applause for the grounds crew ? pic.twitter.com/v1230aOIvj
— Jomboy Media (@JomboyMedia)
Jason Benetti, the Tigers play-by-play announcer, provided some hilarious color commentary on the ordeal.
"The chase for the squirrel is on," Benetti said as Orioles outfielder Leody Taveras and crew members pursued the elusive rodent. "The squirrel is in the corner, and it is still eluding an entire horde of grounds crew members. And it's free again! Hemmed in? No! I won't be hemmed in!"
To prevent the animal from racing around the stadium, the grounds crew began throwing towels at it. Initially, the efforts were unsuccessful, but they eventually managed to wrangle up the squirrel.
Following the end of the (rather lengthy) pursuit, the home plate umpire asked the crowd to give the grounds crew members a round of applause.
"It took 67 of them to get to one squirrel," Benetti said through laughter.
Baseball Fans Poke Fun at Grounds Crew
Tigers and baseball fans alike weighed in on the odd situation on X (formerly known as Twitter).
"Most entertaining part of the season to be honest," one user wrote.
"If anyone says they were pulling for the grounds crew, they are lying! I was team squirrel all the way," another joked.
"Someone cue the Benny Hill music," another wrote, referring to the famous chase music.
