With great hops comes great responsibility.
Red Sox prospect Will Turner submitted his entry for the catch of 2026 after scaling the fence of Delta Dental Park at Hadlock Field in Portland, Maine, to make a wild home run robbery on Saturday night.
In the third inning of the Portland Sea Dogs’ Double-A game against the Reading Fightin Phils, left fielder Raider Tello sent a deep fly ball to left-center field that appeared destined to clear the wall.
Then, in a maneuver befitting of a Marvel film, Turner raced to the warning track, timed his leap perfectly and clung to the wall to make the jaw-dropping grab.
“I would say I’m a big Spider-Man guy,” Turner said postgame, per MLB.com. “Every time I do something like that, I just think of Bo Jackson when he ran on the wall for Kansas City.
“As a kid, I kind of did stuff like that growing up and I feel like it kind of just took me back a little bit, so it was really cool.”
Turner, who turns 24 next month, revealed that his dramatics had actually been years in the making.
Selected in the seventh round of the 2024 MLB Draft by Boston, the University of South Alabama product revealed that he has routinely practiced making home run robberies — to no avail until Saturday’s sparkler.
“Well, you know what’s crazy is I’ve actually — in college — attempted it a few times but I never caught one,” Turner added. “I would either mistime it or the ball would be a little too far. I practiced it a little bit and I feel like it was probably the perfect ball to do it on.”
The catch drew immediate comparisons to other great catches, most notably Athletics outfielder Denzel Clarke, who also did his best Spider-Man impression last season.
Facing the Angels in Anaheim, Clarke pursued a deep flyball hit by Nolan Schanuel and, much like Turner, scaled the wall — and nearly fell over to the other side — as he came down with the ball.
While Turner’s .190 average at Double-A leaves a lot to be desired, he has registered a solid .375 on-base percentage to go with 14 homers and 32 RBIs.
But on Saturday night, after going 1-for-3 at the plate in Portland’s 5-2 loss, it was Turner’s glove that put the spotlight on him.
“That catch that Denzel Clarke made was incredible, and I was like, ‘That looks really cool, I’d love to do that,’ Turner said.
“And I made it happen tonight. So it was definitely a really special moment.”
