SUNY Maritime College Privateer catcher Jake Vera tags the runner at home for the out in their dramatic 5-4 win against Plattsburgh State on February 24, 2019 at Baseball Heaven in Yaphank, NY, a venue covered by our HiCast Sports Network.
We shared this highlight on the morning of Tuesday, February 27 following the Maritime vs. Plattsburgh State double-header on a tip from the pitcher Matt Paghidas’ mom Ellen and it’s been retweeted, reposted, and shared ever since attracting hundreds of thousands of views from fans worldwide including the MLB Network, ESPN Sports Center, CBS Sports and Sports Illustrated followers.
Photo by Maritime Athletics
We caught up with catcher Jake Vera to hear more about this Moment That Matters™…
“It’s kinda crazy, we were just watching MLB Hot Stove and saw it,” said Jake Vera, the catcher who made the play at the plate, a junior at SUNY Maritime.
The Maritime Privateers typically play on their home field, but due to weather conditions during the early portion of their season, they are known to play at Baseball Heaven, a venue in our HiCast Sports Network where we cover all games.
Leading up to the infamous play, the Maritime Privateers were up 5-3 in the final inning of the game. Jake’s roomate Matt Paghidas took the mound and was throwing harder than usual that day. “He blew the first two strikes by the kid and I guess the kid at second was trying to get to third. We ended up having the pick off and the throw went into center field after the ball got past our shortstop. When I saw the throw coming in (to home plate), I knew it was going to be a close play. So I just tried to jump up and make the play but obviously it was way too high. When I turned around, I just saw the ball bounce right back to me and the kid trying to get back to home plate. As I saw the throw go over my head, I just figured we’re going to have to win in a different way, but when I tagged him it was just crazy. Everyone was just going nuts and it was pretty cool.” shared Jake.
Jake Vera grew up in Plainview, NY and has been play baseball for as long as he can remember. He started with T-ball and played baseball for his town team in Bethpage, New York as a child before moving on to travel teams during his teen years and then on to the collegiate level.
Jake knew that the HiCast Sports Network recorded games at Baseball Heaven, but shared that he “honestly didn’t know it would go crazy like this. I can’t even put it into words right now how awesome this is – not just for me – but everyone on our team is really pumped about it. Even our coach texted in our team group chat, ‘sorry about the late practice schedule today, I was re-watching MLB network a couple of times.’ He’s pumped about it too. Overall, it’s a really awesome moment for us.” Read the Maritime College Athletics press release for more.
