Kate Upton calls 'bulls---' as others react to fan-interference call
Warning: Story contains coarse language
In the first inning of Game 4 of the ALCS, Jose Altuve seemed to hit a game-tying two-run homer into the right-field stands that promptly bounced back into play off of Mookie Betts' glove. However, right field umpire Joe West ruled that fans in the stands interfered with the Boston Red Sox outfielder and his ability to catch the deep fly, which was upheld by review, resulting in Altuve being ruled out.
From the rulebook of Major League Baseball, highlighted by Jeff Passan of Yahoo! Sports, "no interference shall be allowed when a fielder reaches over a fence, railing, rope, or into the stands to catch a ball."
From MLB Rulebook ...
— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) October 18, 2018
Joe West 3.16 says you're out. pic.twitter.com/LGK1BjKfPY
Of course, the view that would definitively prove whether or not the fans reached over the wall or if Betts reached into the stands looked like this:
Screen shot from TBS of why they likely didn’t have a “definitive” look at Betts glove in the crowd pic.twitter.com/HZKuqMRhSW
— Mike Ferrin (@Mike_Ferrin) October 18, 2018
Naturally, the controversial call from veteran umpire and crew chief West resulted in some notable Twitter reactions.
Kate Upton, noted supermodel and wife of Houston Astros ace Justin Verlander, said the call was "bullshit":
Watch this video! Mookie’s glove is closed. That’s a home run. #bullshitcall https://t.co/Zb9DLmCZgF
— Kate Upton (@KateUpton) October 18, 2018
Hall of Famer and Atlanta Braves great Chipper Jones had another take, siding with West:
Wow! I agree with call, just can’t believe they got it right! Kudos to replay. Bet they have taller fences in Houston next yr.
— Chipper Jones (@RealCJ10) October 18, 2018
Jeff Francoeur agreed with Jones, believing the assumption that Betts makes that catch is enough:
Couldn’t agree more. Make taller fences. Betts was going to catch it. https://t.co/KSoRz9ipnN
— Jeff Francoeur (@JeffFrancoeur) October 18, 2018
Former catcher J.P. Arencibia seemed to agree with Jones, adding that Betts' glove was clearly closed by the fan:
Anyone who thinks Mookie Betts would close his glove that early on his own has no clue. 🤦🏼♂️
— Jp Arencibia (@jparencibia9) October 18, 2018
Astros pitching prospect Brandon Bailey sided with the call on the field as well:
Unfortunately, if you watch closely, the fan trying to catch the ball is actually the cause of Betts closing his glove prematurely.
— Brandon Bailey (@BBailey_19) October 18, 2018
The rest of Twitter was a little more divided:
You can’t assume: “Mookie Betts was about to rob José Altuve of a home run”
— Reign (@ReignLetkeman29) October 18, 2018
So the review clearly shows that without the interference that play would have been made?
Interesting 🧐 https://t.co/QgHFAOAdyN
Not only was the fan not in the field of play but I genuinely don't know how you assume Betts would have made that catch.
— Kate Feldman (@kateefeldman) October 18, 2018
There is no right call there. It shouldn't be a home run because Betts was going to catch it. It isn't really fan interference because they didn't reach in to the field of play.
— Jeff Cavanaugh (@JC1053) October 18, 2018
MLB saying 'the call stands' and that Joe West called fan interference on the field is fair enough.
The only way I can see that as interference is if they think the fans reached over the fence (which is possible, though it didn't look like that to me). Otherwise the fan absolutely bumped Betts's glove, but it's in the seats and the fielder isn't entitled to the ball anymore.
— Michael Baumann (@MJ_Baumann) October 18, 2018
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