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USATSI

New York Mets first baseman Pete Alonso found himself apologizing to debuting St. Louis Cardinals shortstop Masyn Winn on Friday night after accidentally throwing his first career hit into the stands.

The incident occurred during the bottom of the sixth inning, after Winn legged out an infield single for his first big-league knock. Alonso, who made a diving stab to prevent an errant throw from third baseman Jonathan Arauz, then chucked the ball into the stands. Take a look at the scene below in all its moving picture glory:

Major League Baseball tradition holds that the opposition returns the ball to the player's dugout so that it can be preserved for that player as a memento. 

Alonso's act drew criticism from both the Cardinals dugout and the crowd. After the game, Alonso claimed that he hadn't intended to be malicious toward Winn or his moment, and that he instead had simply made a mistake.

"I feel horrible. I feel awful. I know it sounds stupid, but it's just a bad brain fart," Alonso told reporters.

It's worth noting that the ball was eventually retrieved and returned to Winn, and that Alonso apologized to Winn on two occasions throughout the game. 

"He apologized on first (base), and when he got to second later, he apologized as well," Winn told ESPN. "Complete accident. I thought it was quite funny. Especially after we got the ball back, I thought it was a little more funny."

Winn, who was promoted to the majors prior to Friday's game, is an intriguing prospect with impressive tools and a strong arm. CBS Sports ranked him as the 24th best prospect in the minors as recently as early June. He went 1 for 4 on Friday night overall as part of a 7-1 loss.