By Daily Mail (U.S.) | Created at 2024-10-30 13:47:14 | Updated at 2024-10-30 21:37:04
8 hours ago
Dodgers star Mookie Betts has shared his reaction to the stunning moment in World Series Game 4 when a Yankees fan tried to rip the ball out of his hand.
Betts was forced to reach into the stands to catch a foul ball from New York's Gleyber Torres in the bottom of the first inning, though fan Austin Capobianco (unsuccessfully) tried to interfere with the play and save the Yankees an out.
Betts appeared to be irritated by the incident immediately after it happened, but offered a different tone when speaking after his team's eventual 11-4 loss.
'It's irrelevant, we lost,' he told reporters. 'Didn't matter.'
In addition to Capobianco trying to grab the ball from Betts, his friend John Peter also grabbed the All-Star's arm.
Dodgers star Mookie Betts had to fight off a fan who tried to wrestle the ball from his glove
But he insisted after the game that the moment was 'irrelevant' after the Dodgers lost 11-4
Betts was asked if he had been injured at all on the play, but said he wasn't hurt.
'I didn't even know he grabbed my hand, so [my hand] is perfectly fine,' he said.
However, Betts' teammate Tommy Edman had a much stronger reaction to the fan interference.
'The guy was trying to yank his glove off and pulled on his wrist and it looked like he got ejected, which I'm glad he did. That was unacceptable for a fan.'
Betts' teammate Ben Casparius added that he believed the clash 'set the tone' for the game. '
'I've never seen anything like it,' the Dodgers pitcher said. 'It was obviously very early in the game so I think it kind of set the tone.'
After the play - which was ruled an out despite Capobianco's best efforts - he and his friend were ejected, though the former later admitted to ESPN that he knew his actions would land him in hot water.
'We always joke about the ball in our area,' Capobianco told the sports outlet at a local bar after the game. 'We're not going to go out of our way to attack. If it's in our area, we're going to 'D' up.
Austin Capobianco (left), a season ticket holder from Connecticut, was ejected for his antics
Betts reacts after Freddie Freeman hit a two-run home run during the first inning
'Someone defends, someone knocks the ball. We talk about it. We're willing to do this.'
'I know when I'm in the wrong and as soon as I did it, I was like, 'Boys I'm out of here,'' Capobianco added. 'I patrol that wall and they know that.'
Notably, this was not the first time this series that fans have interfered with a hit from Torres.
In the ninth inning of Game 1, Yankees fans were left furious after a Dodgers fan caught a potential go-ahead homer, which was ultimately ruled a double before New York lost a heartbreaker in extra innings.
The Yankees will now try to keep their momentum going in a must-win Game 5 on Wednesday.
