The New York Yankees have gotten off to a hot start in the 2024 season. They are tangling with the Baltimore Orioles at the top of the division and are among the teams with the most wins in the opening month. Expectations are always high in New York. The Yankees have a rich history of being great, but in the past decade, they have not seen much success. These expectations mean emotions run high. Manager Aaron Boone was ejected in today’s game, which sparked some controversy.
New York Yankees Aaron Boone Ejected
It didn’t take long for Aaron Boone to hit the showers. On the fifth pitch of the game, Oakland Athletics leadoff hitter Esteury Ruiz was hit by a pitch on his foot. Boone thought he swung at it and let home play umpire Hunter Wendelstedt know his displeasure. Wendelstedt did not appreciate the verbal joust.
“You’re not yelling at me,” Wendelstedt yelled at Boone, clear as day on the broadcast. “I did what I was 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.”
One pitch later, Boone was ejected for saying something. This is where the controversy creeps in. The television broadcast had a camera on the New York Yankees manager, who was facing away from home plate. Boone argued that a fan said it and not him. Wendelstedt responded with, “I don’t care who said it. You’re gone.” The manager then went on a profanity-riddled tirade, claiming his innocence. It is another case of umpires trying to show up managers and players.
Another Ridiculous Ump Show
There isn’t another sport where the officials try to throw around their authority, like baseball. It can happen in the NBA with technical fouls, but those situations are few and far between. We have video evidence that Aaron Boone was not the one to yell at the ump. The face Wendelstedt openly said he did not care who said it is an absolute joke. Throwing out the manager is that situation is nothing other than an umpire trying to look like he is in charge.
It is one of the reasons baseball has taken a hit over the years. Fans don’t want to watch a product where the people moderating the game can change the outcome so drastically. What’s to stop this umpire from throwing out a team’s best hitter because he thought he heard him say something? The New York Yankees should get an apology from this umpire and there needs to be some way for things like this to hurt the umpires. If not, we will continue to see these types of situations all the time.
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Matt Brown has been following sports since he was a kid. It does not matter what sport he is talking about; he tends to be an expert in it. When he is not glued to following sports, he is a banker in Wisconsin and hosts two podcasts, Beers and Ears & Discontinued on Display.
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