Nationals got 1 out by throwing ball from first baseman to shortstop back to first

Nationals got 1 out by throwing ball from first baseman to shortstop back to first originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

The Washington Nationals found a new way to get an out at first base on Tuesday night.

It involved a throw from the first baseman to the shortstop and back to first, with no out in between.

It wasn't intentionally set up this way, but it worked out as a 3-6-3 putout.

With the Nats hosting the Atlanta Braves, runners were on first and third with Austin Riley at the plate.

Riley hit a hard grounder to Washington first baseman Luis Garcia Jr., who pivoted to throw to second base, aiming to start a double play with just one out in the inning so far.

His throw managed to travel past the second base bag to where shortstop C.J. Abrams was standing further on the dirt.

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Abrams caught the ball and saw that the play at second had no chance after the misfire, so he just chucked it back to first, where the throw beat Riley.

The intention of Garcia had been to get a double play, but odd defensive positioning and a poor throw meant Abrams' only chance at even a single out was to fire back to first, and he reacted quickly to do so.

It's definitely not something you see everyday.

It's also pretty entertaining from the Nationals, who have been one of baseball's sneaky fun watches in the early going -- more so for their aggressive base running and for James Wood's power, but they're definitely an adventure in the field, too.