By now you have probably heard of Garrett Wittels' amazing feat.
The Florida International baseball player extended his hitting streak Saturday to 56 games, leaving him just two short of Robin Ventura's NCAA record of 58 straight games with a hit.
Though FIU was bounced from the NCAA Tournament on Saturday, Wittels will have the opportunity to extend the streak and go for the record next season.
But did you know the streak nearly ended before it ever really got off the ground?
In FIU's 10th game of the season, Wittels and his teammates squared off with none other than ASU in the Coca-Cola Classic in Surprise.
Hitless until the eighth inning, Wittels recorded a single off ASU sophomore Mitchell Lambson to stretch the streak to 10 games. Just seconds later, before another batter strode to the plate, the game, a 4-1 victory for ASU, was called due to lightning.
There have been other close calls. A handful of times Wittels has needed his last at-bat to keep the streak alive, but none have been as peculiar as that night in Surprise.
As players often remind us, baseball is a funny game. A bounce of a pebble here or a carom off a wall there can change the annals of history.
Sometimes, you just have to try to catch lightning in a bottle.
