ANAHEIM, Calif. – A pitch fly and interference call loomed in the game for the second time in less than a week.
This time it was the New York Yankees and Juan Soto.
The Yankees were loaded with the bases with no outs in the first inning on Wednesday night against the Los Angeles Angels when they were finished off by an unorthodox double play.
Despite the strange start to the game, the Yankees were able to win 2-1.
“It’s a tough way to start things off when you load the bases out there in the first inning and you’ve got a good pitcher on the ropes,” New York manager Aaron Boone said. “But under the letter of the law it was probably the right decision.” , who was expelled.
Giancarlo Stanton hit a high popup near the bag in the second. The umpires called a pitch fly, but Soto hit Angels shortstop Zach Neto with his thigh while trying to get back to second base, causing Neto to lose track of the ball and land in the outfield.
Second base umpire Vic Carapazza ruled that Soto interfered with Neto, resulting in the second being out.
“It’s obviously a shaky play. Once Juan commits to getting there and trying to get out of the way, if Neto catches it, he might catch it in the bag on a double play. It’s like, ‘Where does it go?'” Boone said.
Carapazza said in a postgame pool report that his opinion was that Soto did not intentionally make contact with Neto for the tackle, but that Soto was not standing on the base, which is the only time a baserunner is protected.
“I had him interfere with the fielder and called the fly first, which the batter was now out. The tackle was then second,” Carapazza said.
Neto also agreed that Soto was not trying to interfere. It was just bad timing.
“I had no intention of getting in his way or getting in my way,” Neto said. “The game just happened and I was trying to catch the ball.” “It got a little back on me. The umpire said every shortstop in the big league catches that ball. I was trying to catch it, and he happened to be right there.”
Boone came out to dispute the call and Carabazza ejected him. It was Boone’s third sending off of the season and the 36th of his career.
Tyler Anderson and the Angels came out of the inning unscathed when Alex Verdugo grounded out.
Bench coach Brad Ausmus, who managed the Angels in 2019, took over after Boone was fired.
Last Thursday in Chicago, the umpires ruled that White Sox designated runner Andrew Vaughn interfered with Orioles shortstop Gunnar Henderson on a popup by Andrew Benintendi, ending a game that Baltimore won 8-6.
MLB said after that game that there was some discretion to not call the interference, but Carapazza said that did not apply here.
“I called the fly base first, which the batter is now out. That was not the case in that one.” [White Sox-Orioles] He plays. “It’s a little different,” Carapazza said.
Boone, like White Sox manager Pedro Grifol, hopes MLB can provide more clarity on tackles.
“I mean the sequence is important,” Boone said. “But hopefully we can reconsider a little bit.” “Juan is in double jeopardy, and if he doesn’t get there and if you don’t make it back the right way, he’ll be stuck with Neto and maybe misjudge a little bit. But what do you do as a person? A runner out there?”
