Mets’ Jeff McNeil has baseballs thrown at him while playing outfield in Cincinnati
In the late stages of the Mets’ 2-1 win over the Cincinnati Reds on Wednesday night, outfielder Jeff McNeil was heckled by fans and it almost got ugly.
In the bottom of the eighth inning, a ball was thrown in McNeil’s direction. McNeil told Newsday’s Tim Healey after the game that he didn’t see where the ball came from so he just threw it into the stands in left field of Great American Ball Park in Cincinnati.
A second ball came towards him just before Adam Ottavino delivered a pitch, which forced McNeil to throw it into the infield. This act apparently drew the ire of Reds fans who began booing McNeil when he batted in the top of the ninth and took the field in the bottom half of the inning.
“You don’t expect that in Cincinnati, do you?” manager Buck Showalter said after the game. “They threw one, he thought it was some kid who dropped it. So he picks it up, throws it back up there and here comes another one that barely missed him.”
McNeil, who went 1-for-5 in the contest, was sarcastic when talking about the incident to Healey but made sure to convey its severity.
“I made some friends,” McNeil said. “But that should never happen at a major league baseball game.”
The Mets alerted ballpark security of the incident and “six or seven” people were ejected, according to Showalter.
New York finishes their three-game set with Cincinnati on Thursday afternoon at 12:35 p.m. looking to take the series. Hopefully, there won’t be any wild baseballs on the outfield.
