15-year Marliniversary: Cousins bulls over Posey in 12th for controversial winning run

Outfielder Scott Cousins played in just 135 career games over four seasons in Major League Baseball. He’s most infamously remembered, however, for a play that took place in extra innings on this day 15 years ago.

With the contest tied in the top of the 12th, Cousins bulled over San Francisco Giants catcher Buster Posey at the plate for the winning run as the Florida Marlins pulled out a 7-6 victory. In the process, Posey suffered a season-ending injury, prompting leaguewide discussion about collisions at home plate.

After catcher John Buck singled off Giants reliever Guillermo Mota to lead off the top of the 12th inning at AT&T Park on May 25, 2011, Cousins entered the game as a pinch hitter. Attempting to sacrifice, Cousins bunted the first pitch he saw back to the pitcher but Mota was able to get the lead runner at second.

One pitch later, Omar Infante singled to right field and Cousins raced over to third, putting runners on the corners with one out. Emilio Bonifácio followed by popping one into shallow right field. Nate Schierholtz made the catch for San Francisco and fired to the plate.

Tagging up from third base, Cousins made his way home and went shoulder-first into Posey at the plate. The ball popped away, giving the Marlins the lead, but Posey was unable to get up. After a delay, the San Francisco catcher was carried off the field. Burke Badenhop worked a 1-2-3 bottom of the inning to collect the save and secure the Marlins win.

While Posey’s injury sparked controversy, it could have been avoided had it not been for a dismal bottom of the ninth from the Florida bullpen. After Giancarlo Stanton (then known as Mike Stanton) extended the Marlins’ lead to 6-2 with a bases-clearing double in the top of the inning, the Giants scored four runs in the bottom half to force extras. Aubrey Huff’s two-run single off Juan Carlos Oviedo (then known as Leo Núñez) tied the game.

Stanton had a big night for Florida, going 4-for-6 with four RBIs. Logan Morris was 3-for-5 with two runs scored in the win. Freddy Sanchez finished with four hits for San Francisco.

As for Posey, he would make a full recovery. In 2012, Posey was named National League MVP as the Giants captured their second of three World Series titles over a five-year span. Posey would finish his career as a seven-time All-Star.

His injury, however, led to rule changes that disallowed runners from deviating from a direct pathway to the plate. Catchers were also forced to provide a path to the plate for runners.

While Posey could one day find himself in Cooperstown, Cousins’ big-league career was relatively short. After hitting .297 in 28 games in 2010, Cousins struggled over his final two seasons with the Marlins, batting just .140 (21-for-150) before appearing in just seven games with the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim in 2013. While Cousins maintains that he had no intentions of injuring Posey, he did receive plenty of ire from around the league and in the media. He also reportedly received death threats.

Cousins’ controversial slide against the Giants, however, did prompt meaningful rule changes throughout baseball. That slide came in a contest that lasted more than four hours on this day 15 years ago.