Giancarlo Stanton hits 38th homer; fan throws ball back and hits him with it
Mandatory Credit: Photo by CJ GUNTHER/EPA-EFE/REX/Shutterstock (9904552t) New York Yankees Giancarlo Stanton looks towards the Green Monster after a fan threw his home run ball back onto the field striking him during the seventh inning against the Boston Red Sox at Fenway Park in Boston, Massachusetts, USA, 29 September 2018. New York Yankees at Boston Red Sox, Usa - 29 Sep 2018 Credit: CJ GUNTHER/EPA-EFE/REX/Shutterst/CJ GUNTHER/EPA-EFE/REX/Shutterstock
BOSTON – Giancarlo Stanton not only shrugged off the fact that a fan hit him with a baseball Saturday afternoon, he laughed it off.
“I wouldn’t have thought it would get to me that fast from a fan throwing it,” Stanton said with a smile after the Yankees’ 8-5 victory over the Red Sox at Fenway Park. “I’ve never seen it happen before.”
Stanton hit his 38th homer in the seventh inning, a towering shot that landed in the seats atop the Green Monster in left-center. A male fan quickly picked up the baseball and chucked it back on the field. The ball hopped once and softly hit Stanton in the right shoulder area as he rounded second and headed toward third.
A surprised Stanton, running with his head down, looked up in the direction of the Monster.
Did he find the situation alarming? He smiled again.
“That’s the idea when you’re an opposing fan,” Stanton said of throwing back home run balls hit by the opposition. “I don’t think that’s what he meant to do. Either way, if I was looking up, I could have grabbed it easily. It happens all the time at our stadium; here, too. I’m not too worried about it.”
The fan promptly was ejected by law enforcement, though not arrested.
Stanton -- who also had a run-scoring double in the first inning and reached the 100-RBI mark -- said he was somewhat impressed that the fan threw the ball as far as he did and “got his target.”
“Whatever,” he said, the smile never leaving his face. “He got in trouble for it, so it’s fine on both sides.”
