World off axis: Dodger Mark Ellis commits two errors in one game

By Steve Dilbeck

Aug. 14, 2012 12 AM PT

A mountain lion in Griffith Park, Webster’s adds “F-bomb” to the dictionary, a 17-foot python is found in a Florida swamp, a Belarus female shot-putter is stripped of gold … and we ignored the most shocking news story of the day:

Mark Ellis committed two errors in one game.

Coming soon – college tuition plummets, Lady Gaga shops at Gap, MMA fighter breaks into church naked (whoops, too late on that one).

Ellis has been a grand discovery for most Dodgers fans this season. They’d heard he had a terrific glove, but watching him every day making the routine plays, the smart plays, all mixed in with some jaw-droppers, has been pure delight.

He’s been remarkably consistent. As good and smooth a defensive second baseman as you could hope for. A genuine defensive pleasure.

Which is why his two errors in the Dodgers’ 5-4 victory over the Pirates on Monday was so completely stunning.

To that point, Ellis had made only one error all year. And he doubled that in one game? He only averages about five errors per season, and that’s including his career-high of 14 in his first full season in the majors in 2003.

But it happened. The first was a relay throw wide of home and the second a fielding error on a hard-hit drive by Sterling Marte that could have been ruled a hit.

Ellis had not had two errors in a single game in over five years (May 13, 2007). He’s never had more than two, and he’s only had two errors in one contest four times in 1,154 career games.

Pretty sure next we’ll hear about an MMA fighter dropping the F-bomb as he ran into a church naked upon watching a 17-foot python swallow a mountain lion in Griffith Park.

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