Being a rookie in MLB is difficult. Baltimore Orioles left fielder Colton Cowser already knew this, but unfortunately he has become the 2024 poster boy for rookie mistakes.
Cowser’s teammate Craig Kimbrel recorded his 422nd career save late in the Orioles’ 9-7 victory over the Kansas City Royals on Saturday night. That number ties Kimbrel to the legendary Billy Wagner for seventh on the all-time saves list, so it was important baseball.
That ball fell into Cowser’s glove on the third out, and what did he do with it?
He threw it backwards and fell into the Kauffmann Stadium fountain. There is no video of the ball after it left Cowser’s glove, but there is video of Cowser throwing the ball back with reckless abandon.
After the game, Cowser spoke to reporters and explained what happened.
“Just when I played,” Cowser said: remembering the exact moment he realized he had screwed up. “I said ‘Craig has a lot of saves, that might have been important.’ I literally told Ced [center fielder Cedric Mullins] right when I did that, ‘maybe I messed up.’ And it turns out so. But we got the ball back. They said he was the only one at the bottom.”
It’s not every day something like this happens, so Cowser’s teammates had a lot of fun mocking him during the interview. Cowser is sure he will be irritated by this for the rest of the season. Via Baltimore Sun, beat writer Jacob Calvin Meyer:
Reporter: So you threw it straight to the source?
Cowser: I just left it behind me. I didn’t think much. I kind of messed up. I think every time Craig saves now –
Jackson Holliday interrupts and mockingly asks: What did you do again?
Jackson Holliday jokingly asks: What kind of prom was it?
Cowser: It was the most important ball. Billy Wagner equalizes career saves.
Cowser: Craig Kimbrel ball. Craig, you know, I don’t think he can authenticate it anymore. But we’ll be fine. He was the only one at the fountain.
Reporter: How long will it be before you get over this?
Cowser: I won’t. It will be the whole year. Every time I catch a ball that is the last out for him, it stays in his glove.
Cowser fully understands how badly he screwed up, but told the media that Kimbrel has been understanding.
“I don’t know if he’s still upset or not. I don’t know if he’s upset,” Cowser said. “Obviously it’s a pretty exorbitant number of saves, so yeah. Awesome guy. I’m glad he’s understanding.”
But Orioles manager Brandon Hyde didn’t let Cowser off the hook.
“I think Cow just threw the ball into the stands,” Hyde said via AP. “We need to have a little more awareness in left field when you get that, when the guy on the mound has so many saves.”
Being a rookie relieves Cowser of knowing where the visiting club’s headquarters are when he goes to a stadium for the first time. This does not exempt you from knowing relevant facts about your teammates that may have some influence on the game. But after all this publicity and a season’s worth of mockery from his teammates, there’s no chance of something like that happening to Cowser again.
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