New York Yankees manager Aaron Boone was ejected from Monday’s game against the Oakland Athletics after an umpire appeared to confuse a fan’s heckling with Boone’s. The ejection happened just five pitches after the start of the game.
After a pitch from Yankees starter Carlos Rodón was called a strike by Hunter Wendelstedt, the home plate umpire removed his mask, walked toward the Yankees’ dugout, and began yelling at the bench.
“Hey, guess what? You’re not yelling at me,” Wendelstedt shouted. “I did what I’m supposed to do and checked! I’m looking for him to get hit by the pitch! You got anything else to say, you’re gone! OK?”
Seven seconds later, Boone was ejected from the game.
“Aaron, you’re done!” Wendelstedt shouted.
Boone rushed out of the dugout and said he never said anything. He pointed to the stands and repeated that he didn’t say anything.
“It was above our dugout!” Boone exclaimed.” I didn’t say anything! I did not say anything!”
“I don’t care who said it, you’re gone,” Wendelstedt shouted in return.
The offending remark appeared to come from the stands. There was evidence that corroborated Boone’s claim.
The YES network caught the entire exchange on video and identified a fan it believed heckled the umpire, which resulted in Boone’s ejection.
Additionally, the video shows Boone not saying one word from the moment Wendelstedt initially warned him to the time he ejected him. He stood quietly atop his team’s dugout steps, chewing gum. Boone looked at his hand a split second before his ejection.
“It’s embarrassing,” Boone told reporters after the game. “I couldn’t believe it.”
Wendelstedt later explained why he ejected Boone, the Associated Press reported. He doubled down on his reasoning and stood by his decision, refusing to admit any possible mistake.
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“In my opinion, the cheap shot came towards the far end, so instead of me being aggressive and walking down to the far end and trying to figure out who might have said it or who — I don’t want to eject a ballplayer,” Wendelstedt said. “We need to keep them in the game. That’s what the fans pay to see. Aaron Boone runs the Yankees, he got ejected.”
Boone’s ejection was the second-fastest in major league baseball history, multiple outlets reported. The record for fastest ejection belongs to Baltimore manager Earl Weaver on Aug. 15, 1975. He was ejected for arguing with an umpire during a lineup card exchange before the game started, according to the Associated Press.
