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Fans try to grab ball from Dodgers' Mookie Betts in World Series Game 4; Interference called

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Published  October 29, 2024 10:08pm EDT
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FOX 11

Yankee fans banned from World Series

Two Yankee fans who tried to grab the ball out of Mookie Betts' glove in Game 4 of the World Series have been banned and their season tickets will be refunded.

NEW YORK (KTTV) - Yet another fan interference drama broke out in the World Series. 

This time it happened at Yankee Stadium, instead of Dodger Stadium. In the first inning of Game 4 of the Fall Classic, New York Yankees infielder Gleyber Torres hit a fly ball towards the foul territory of the right field stands, leaving Los Angeles Dodgers' Mookie Betts to chase the ball.

Betts jumped up and got the ball, but as he tried to go down the fence, two Yankee fans tried to pry the ball out of Betts' glove, leaving the Dodger star visibly frustrated. In the video shown by FOX's broadcast, a man reached into Betts' glove in his left hand and the other fan grabbed the Dodger outfielder's right wrist.

Torres was ultimately called out on the play and according to FOX's broadcast, the fans involved in the play were tossed from the game.

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NEW YORK, NY - OCTOBER 29:  Mookie Betts #50 of the Los Angeles Dodgers makes a leaping catch against the wall during Game 4 of the 2024 World Series presented by Capital One between the Los Angeles Dodgers and the New York Yankees at Yankee Stadium on Tuesday, October 29, 2024 in New York, New York. (Photo by Daniel Shirey/MLB Photos via Getty Images)

For those familiar with the drama that came out of Game 1 of the World Series last Friday, Torres was also on the hitting end of a different fan-interference play. 

In the Game 1 play, Torres blasted a line drive toward left-centerfield, likely headed to the wall. However, a fan in a gray Dodgers jersey extended his glove, essentially catching a live ball.

The rare and strange play prompted the umpires on the field to keep Torres at second as opposed to letting him round all four bases for a home run. Dodgers ended up winning that game 6-3 in extra innings.

Other postseason fan interference plays and no-calls in the past, however, ended up being consequential for the teams involved. One of the more infamous plays was the 1996 "Jeffrey Maier incident" where a 12-year-old fan pulled a live ball into the stands from a Baltimore Orioles outfielder, helping the Yankees in the process. Umpires at the game ended up not ruling that play a fan interference, awarding Derek Jeter a home run in that at-bat. The Yankees ended up winning that series against the Orioles.

"That was a home run, guys," Jeter playfully said of the play during MLB on FOX's Oct. 2024 broadcast.