Jose Siri tracked a would-be grand slam, robbed Taylor Walls at the wall at Tropicana Field, and then later learned he’d saved chicken tenders—while the Angels fell 5-2 to the Rays.
ST. PETERSBURG — The ball was already off the bat, already carrying toward the left-field wall, already looking like it would decide the moment.
In the bottom of the third, the Angels turned to Mitch Farris after starter Jack Kochanowicz issued three walks and two singles in the frame. Farris inherited a bases-loaded, one-out situation with the Angels trailing 3-1 after Jonathan Aranda and Richie Palacios scored in the inning.
After Farris struck out Hunter Fedduccia. Taylor Walls stepped in and watched the first pitch from Farris — a 91.4 mph four-seamer middle-up. Walls took it and launched it 330 feet to left field, with Statcast projecting it for a grand slam. The launch angle measured 46 degrees, the hang time 6.5 seconds.
Jose Siri didn’t flinch. He tracked the ball toward the wall and reached over the fence to rob Walls of the big hit.
Siri later shrugged off the moment to his teammates. tipped his cap to the crowd as he jogged back to the dugout. and kept the Angels from turning a bad inning into an avalanche. It was also a piece of theater against the club he spent the previous three seasons with. Siri played for the Rays from 2022-24 and made the grab against his former team.
“I think it’s something that I have always done,” Siri said in Spanish. “I have good defense and I just [tried] to do what I do in the outfield and at home plate.”
“They were happy, they congratulated me and that it was a tremendous play,” Siri said of his teammates. “I felt good coming back here. I had a good time and I felt the love of a lot of fans, enjoying seeing me.”
Walls hasn’t hit a home run this season, but the shortstop knows what those swings look like when they carry. He hit one against the Yankees in 2023. He said he felt the ball was squared up, but the trajectory surprised him.
“Off the bat, I knew I squared it up, but I knew I hit it really high,” Walls said. “Honestly. I thought it was probably going to be a flyout to the track. and then as it kept carrying. and where it ended up — when he started to get to the wall — I’m like. ‘Dang. there’s a chance this goes over.’ And then he robbed it. and I’m like. ‘Dude. you’ve got to be kidding.’.
“I’m like, ‘Dude, if I had like nine or 10 of them, and you took one away, fine. I’ve got zero. Like, let me have one,’” he added.
Siri didn’t just keep the Rays’ lead from swelling. He also contributed offensively earlier in the game. In the top of the second, Siri flared the ball to right field for a single. He then advanced to third base after Logan O’Hoppe hit a double on a sharp line drive to left field. later scoring on a wild pitch from Shane McClanahan.
The Rays still took control and finished with a 5-2 win at Tropicana Field.
Wade Meckler, who hit a grand slam in the first inning on Saturday, pinch-hit for Siri in the seventh. Siri went 1-for-2 and struck out in the fourth inning. After Meckler grounded out, O’Hoppe hit a solo homer in the seventh to cut the deficit to 3-2.
Then came the part that wasn’t about baseball at all—until it was.
Siri found out after he was taken out that the catch had spared more than just damage on the scoreboard.
“I saw the [food] after they took me out of the game,” Siri said. “I saw that there were some chicken tenders, they looked good and I saved them.”
That saved food landed right where it mattered, according to the people watching the inning unfold.
“I thought it was great,” manager Kurt Suzuki said. “That was huge. I mean, four runs, they would have turned into a seven to one [ballgame]. It would have made it a lot tougher on us. So, I think that was a huge play in the game.”
Through 18 at-bats this season, Siri owns a .333/.368/.611 slash line with six hits, six runs and two homers. The Angels selected the contract of the outfielder from the Salt Lake Bees on May 16 after signing him to a Minor League contract on Feb. 11.
On Sunday, at least, his return to Tropicana Field came with two kinds of relief: fewer runs allowed, and a second chance at the chicken tenders he said he saved.
Jose Siri Taylor Walls grand slam robbery Angels vs Rays Tropicana Field chicken tenders Kurt Suzuki Mitch Farris Jack Kochanowicz Statcast
Siri really said no to the grand slam and then saved the tenders?? Baseball is weird lol.
Wait so the Angels were losing 5-2 but the big story is he robbed a homer and “saved buffet”?? Like is that a food thing in the stands or what. I don’t even understand the headline.
He robbed the ball at the wall, but he “saved chicken tenders” like… the ball got eaten by the concession stand? Sounds fake. Either way, Rays always somehow have the best defenders, it’s like they’re coached by magic.
I’m sorry but 91 mph plus 330 feet should’ve been gone, so how does it just get stopped at the wall like that. Also why did they take out the pitcher after walks?? That part sounds like bad management. Jose Siri tipping his cap is cool though, I’ll give him that. Angels really couldn’t catch a break.