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Dustin Ackley robs homer with leaping grab, joins 'catch of the year' discussion

Mike Oz

You'll excuse Dustin Ackley if he's not as graceful as some of the outfielders who often get associated with great leaping catches.

Ackley, the Seattle Mariners left fielder these days, was a second baseman until mid 2013. But his impressive leaping grab Monday night to steal a home run from Travis d'Arnaud of the New York Mets, proved that Ackley is a real outfielder now.

This didn't have the elegance of Mike Trout stealing a homer. Also, Ackley's landing could use some work, but there's no arguing with the results — he sized up the homer, jumped, caught the ball over the fence and brought it back with him. Ackley also had three hits and an RBI to contribute to Seattle's 5-2 win.

(AP)
(AP)

''I knew I felt something. I didn't know if I felt it hit off my glove or go in the web, but when I came down is when I knew I had it,'' Ackley said. ''I was like, 'Well something is in there.'''

How does Ackley's catch rate against some of the best of the MLB season so far?

We'll let you chime in on that in the comments, but we'll point you to Ben Revere's flying catch, David Lough's soaring grab and Yasiel Puig's incredible dive as three contenders.

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Mike Oz is an editor for Big League Stew on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at mikeozstew@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter!