MLB bans two Yankees fans who disrupted Mookie Betts from attending Game 5

Major League Baseball has banned the two New York Yankees fans who grabbed the glove of Los Angeles Dodgers right fielder Mookie Betts, broke it open and ripped the baseball loose from attending Game 5 of the World Series at Yankee Stadium on Wednesday night said a league spokesman The athlete.

“Well, A for effort.”

This play was called fan intervention, in which a Yankee fan tried to pull the ball out of Mookie Betts' glove after an out. pic.twitter.com/iZ6taImncd

– FOX Sports: MLB (@MLBONFOX) October 30, 2024

Austin Capobianco, 38, of Connecticut, was ejected after the incident in the first inning of the Yankees' 11-4 win in Game 4 on Tuesday night. Another fan, identified by ESPN as John Peter, was ejected alongside Capobianco.

The Yankees addressed the situation in a statement Wednesday afternoon.

“Last night, two fans were ejected from Yankee Stadium for egregious and unacceptable physical contact with Dodgers outfielder Mookie Betts. The safety of players, fans and stadium staff is the fundamental element of every event at Yankee Stadium and must not be compromised. Tonight is the last home game of the year and we want the passion of our fans to shine through. Yankee Stadium is known for its energy and intensity, but the exuberance of supporting one's team must never cross the line into intentionally putting players at physical risk. The Yankees and Major League Baseball have a zero-tolerance policy toward the type of behavior exhibited last night. These fans will not be allowed to attend tonight’s game in any way.”

According to a source briefed on the discussions, the Major League Baseball Players Association contacted MLB directly and encouraged them to suspend the two fans for Game 5.

Darren Capobianco said his brother Austin is a Yankees season ticket holder. The Yankees have not commented on the future status of his seats. Austin Capobianco did not respond to text messages from The athlete I'm looking for a comment this morning.

After the game, Capobianco attempted to argue to stadium security that Betts' glove had entered foul territory.

In the bottom of the first inning, with the Yankees losing 2-0, leadoff hitter Gleyber Torres threw a high pop into right field foul territory. As Betts pinned the ball with his glove over the padded wall, Capobianco grabbed Betts' glove with both hands, opened it, reached in with his right hand and threw the ball back onto the field. The referees ruled that the game fans had intervened and Torres was eliminated.

“It doesn’t matter,” Betts said when asked if he had ever seen fans behave so aggressively. “We lost, it's irrelevant, I'm fine, he's fine, everything's cool. We lost the game, I'm kind of focused on that, turning the page. Everything is OK.”

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(Photo: Al Bello/Getty Images)