Daily Times

It was late in the 2015 season when Baltimore’s Manny Machado smoked a pitch from Tampa Bay’s Chris Archer into center field at Camden Yards.

Kevin Kiermaier sprinted to the wall, turned and leaped high above it before reaching back and snatching the ball . He banged off the wall and landed on his feet with the ball firmly planted in his glove for the out.

The play sent a dejected Machado back to the dugout and left a stunned Archer simply mouthing, “Wow.”

Archer, now with Pittsburgh, was so grateful for Kiermaier’s extraordinary effort that he searched for a fitting way to thank his center fielder for keeping that run off the board.

He found it by commissioning a painting of the catch, which he presented to Kiermaier at spring training the next year.

“It happens so rarely you’re in awe,” Archer said. “It’s an awesome feeling. They have the defensive runs saved calculation, but when you actually see a run taken away it feels so good.”

Kiermaier recalled the team meeting where he received the painting and shared where he has it displayed.

“It’s hanging up on my wall right now and I look at it all the time,” he said. “It’s such a great gesture, and he did that all on his own.”

Everyone has seen an outfielder receive a tip of the cap or a jubilant fist bump from a pitcher after a home run robbery.

This is a story about what happens after they leave the field. It’s a look at home run robbers, the pitchers who love them and the swag these elite defenders collect after making highlight-reel grabs.

The artwork isn’t the only surprise Kiermaier, a two-time Gold Glove winner, has received for amazing grabs. He’s been gifted with whiskey, a case of beer and even his favorite sweets after helping out a pitcher with his defense.

“You see like quarterbacks, they’re taking their linemen out because their linemen are the guys that are protecting them,” Kiermaier said. “Baseball has its ways of doing that as well.”

Speedy Texas Rangers center fielder Delino DeShields has robbed a few homers in his five seasons in the majors. One of the most memorable came when he climbed the center field wall at Globe Life Park to deny San Diego’s Hunter Renfroe a two-run shot last season. The robbery helped Mike Minor pitch seven scoreless innings in a 5-2 win.

Minor, who could be seen saying, “Oh my God” after the catch, decided DeShields deserved a treat for helping him keep a zero on the board.

His loot? An electric scooter. Ostensibly to help save DeShields’ legs for more such catches.

While Kiermaier and DeShields are the leaders in the clubhouse for home run robbery rewards, plenty of other outfielders have received gifts for their thievery.

Seattle’s Keon Broxton has a knack for making such plays, often late in games. The rangy center fielder has three home run robberies in the ninth inning or later in his career, with two of those coming with Corey Knebel pitching when Broxton was with the Brewers.

There was one on and two out in the ninth inning of a 2017 game with Milwaukee up 6-5 over the Cardinals when Broxton reached over the wall in front of a 400-foot sign to rob Randal Grichuk of what would have been a go-ahead blast and give the Brewers the win.