Blue Jays OF comes off IL to make 'one of the best catches I've ever seen in my life'

This wasn’t a Varsho classic, though. Instead of scaling the wall or slamming into it, Varsho tripped over his own feet while he raced back to the wall on a deep drive from Red Sox left fielder Jarren Duran. He fell right onto his backside, but kept tracking the ball as he used his momentum to roll onto the warning track and made the spectacular catch reaching out with his back hand.

“I just stuck my glove out and somehow it went in,” Varsho said after the 10-2 loss, already laughing at himself a bit. “It was probably a really high percent probability of a catch and I made it look really hard.”

In fact, the play had a 95 percent catch probability, per Statcast.

When Varsho made the grab, he was facing the wall squarely with the No. 5 on the back of his jersey facing home plate. It was the type of trick play you might try to pull off in the backyard as a kid.

Varsho, always the more reserved member of the outfield -- which you saw in the quick, bashful grin across his face after the catch -- even let one slip when he felt himself trip.

“I said a profanity word,” Varsho said. “But then I was like, ‘OK, where’s the ball?’”

You’d think John Schneider and Varsho's teammates would be used to this by now, but he just keeps raising the bar.

“I thought it was going off the batter’s eye, then when you see Varsho fall, you immediately say, ‘Don’t fall on your shoulder,’” Schneider said. “Then, you watch him catch it and you go, ‘Man, you’re really good.’ That’s not exactly what I said in the dugout. I know this is live right now and I’m trying to be nice. But that was really cool. You just shake your head.”

Varsho has this ability to make even his opponents stop and stare, too. Duran homered earlier in the game, so he’ll still sleep well tonight, but his Red Sox teammates had to appreciate what they saw and Boston’s stars had no problem applauding the play after they coasted to a comfortable win.

Rafael Devers: “I have never seen a play like that. Kudos to him. Great play. That was an amazing play.”

Alex Bregman: “No, that was incredible. That was one of the best catches I've ever seen in my life. I wish he wouldn't have, because it would have been a nice triple for Jarren, but you’ve got to tip your hat to him there. That was an unbelievable play.”

Nothing should surprise us at this point with Varsho, though. He’s the reigning Gold Glove Award winner and it’s surprising that was his first, given the reputation he’s built across the league. This perfectly captured Varsho’s natural ability to adjust on the fly to make these awkward, uncomfortable catches, something he’s credited to playing multiple sports growing up.

In high school, Varsho was named to the 2013 Wisconsin Football Coaches Association All-State Team as a safety. Whether it’s taking a big hit from the wall or tracking balls over his head, that switch still flips in his head when he’s on the diamond.

“It’s different hand-eye stuff to help you in different sports. It helps your body to move in different ways,” Varsho said in 2024 . “Like how it is out on the field, you have to be agile and be able to flip your hips. Playing football, being a safety and being able to track the football -- and I was a punt returner, too -- probably helped, as well.”

The crowd absolutely erupted when Varsho made the grab, which was a welcome shift in the building after the Red Sox had hit five home runs in the first three innings. Add it to Varsho’s career highlight reel with the Blue Jays, and this one might belong at the very top.