A New York Yankees fan has been banned from all MLB stadiums for life after throwing a baseball that hit Boston Red Sox left fielder Alex Verdugo during Saturday night’s game.
A Yankees spokesperson told NJ.com that the fan was banned from Yankees Stadium, and MLB followed by issuing a ban at all 29 other ballparks in the league.
“While the Yankees appreciate the spirit and passion of our fans in our various rivalries — especially with the Red Sox — reckless, disorderly and dangerous behavior that puts the safety of players, field staff or fellow fans in jeopardy will not be tolerated,” the Yankees told NJ.com in a statement. “There is absolutely no place for it at Yankee Stadium. The safety of everyone at Yankee Stadium, including guests in the stands and players on the field, will always be the top priority for the Yankees organization every time we open our doors.”
Verdugo was hit by a ball thrown from the left field bleachers during pouring rain at Yankees Stadium on Saturday night, and Red Sox manager Alex Cora briefly pulled his players from the field. Stadium officials then worked to identify which fan threw the ball at Verdugo, later escorting the fan out of the stadium.
Somebody threw a ball at Alex Verdugo here at Yankee Stadium pic.twitter.com/CJT91lOlGI
— Dillard Barnhart (@BarnHasSpoken2) July 18, 2021
The fan was not arrested, but Yankees officials planned to meet with authorities Sunday to provide them with more information.
“There’s zero place for that in this great game and in this great rivalry,” Yankees manager Aaron Boone said, according to Newsday. “Players should never feel like they have to worry about anything like that. I already reached out to Alex Cora, just apologizing to Alex Verdugo. That’s just a terrible, bad, sad situation.”
• Andy Kostka can be reached at akostka@washingtontimes.com.
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