Yankees fans who interfered with Betts' catch are banned from Game 5 of the World Series

NEW YORK (AP) — Two New York Yankees fans which were thrown out from Game 4 of the World Series for interfering with Los Angeles Dodgers right fielder Mookie Betts has been ruled out of Game 5 on Wednesday night.

Betts jumped to the wall in foul territory and initially caught Gleyber Torres’ pop-up in the first inning Tuesday night, but a fan in the front row wearing a gray Yankees road jersey grabbed Betts’ glove with both hands and pulled the ball out. Another fan grabbed Betts’ hand without gloves.

The Yankees called the fans’ behavior “egregious and unacceptable.”

“Yankee Stadium is known for its energy and intensity, but the exuberance of supporting a team can never cross the line and intentionally put players in physical danger,” the team said in a statement Wednesday. “The Yankees and Major League Baseball maintain a zero rating. -tolerance policy regarding the type of behavior exhibited last night. These fans will not be allowed to attend tonight’s match in any capacity.”

The Major League Baseball Players Association also expressed concerns about player safety and security.

“As with any incident on the ballpark affecting players, we have been in regular contact with league safety officials since last night’s incident and will continue to review both the response to that incident and the protective measures taken moving forward, starting tonight keep a close eye on it,” the spokesperson said. the union said in a statement.

The Dodgers had a two-run lead at the time of the incident Freddie Freeman’s two-run homer. Betts reacted angrily to the play and Torres was immediately called for fan interference.

“When it comes to the person in the game, it doesn’t matter,” Betts said after the Yankees expanded the series with a 11-4 win. “We lost. It’s not relevant. I’m doing well. He’s doing well. Everything is cool. We lost the game and I’m kind of focused on that. We have to turn the page and get ready for tomorrow.”

It was the second time Torres had an at-bat affected by fan interference during this World Series. With two outs in the ninth inning of Game 1 at Dodger Stadium, Torres hit a fly ball to left field, and a fan reached over and caught the ball. Torres got a double.

Torres later hit a three-run homer to right field for New York’s final runs.

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