Ump Show: Third base umpire stands in to take charge from Brett Baty

MLB umpires find new and creative ways to ruin baseball games all the time but we've got to hand it to them, the collision between New York Mets third baseman Brett Baty and third base umpire Doug Eddings felt like something new and fresh.

It all happened when Cardinals second baseman Jose Fermin hit a line drive towards Baty down the third base line. Baty rushed to field the ball in foul territory with hopes of getting a throw to first. His efforts were thwarted by Eddings, whose backpedaling did nothing to prevent the third baseman from colliding with him. They both toppled over and Fermin took first base with ease.

The mishap in all its glory comes to us via SNY:

Eddings may have been trying to take the charge but he didn't get his feet set until after Baty made contact, so that should have been marked as a shooting foul...if this was basketball.

It being baseball, that's just a really, really, really embarrassing moment from the ump.

Mets are lucky umpire mishap wasn't worse

We can be honest here. Baty wasn't going to get the out there. Not without a spectacular throw that probably isn't in his toolkit.

That's the only thing stopping this from being a truly game-ruining lowlight. But can you imagine if Baty did have a play? What if there was a runner on second? What if Baty had been injured on the play?

That just can't happen if you're the umpire.

Fermin made it to first but Sean Manaea retired the next three batters to neutralize that lead-off single.

The Mets are battling to get back to .500 after a rough stretch over the last two weeks. Since taking a series over the Dodgers they've dropped series to the Padres and Cardinals. They are coming off a sweep by the Rays over the weekend.

Monday's game against St. Louis was the first of three games. The series will end on Wednesday with the Mets heading home to face the Braves.