The Los Angeles Dodgers experienced a wide range of oddities during the Opening Series against the Colorado Rockies, but on Friday night, Max Muncy was subjected to having a laser pointed in his eyes by a New York Mets fan.
The incident occurred during the ninth inning when Muncy was looking to get the Dodgers a lead. He fell behind in the count against Edwin Diaz and called for time right before the right-hander delivered a pitch.
Muncy pointed down the third-base line as he had an animated conversation with home-plate umpire Chris Conroy. Muncy also apologized to Diaz over the delay, though he didn’t appear too disrupted as the at-bat ended in a strikeout after the fan was ejected.
“Some fan was shining a laser in his eye the first two pitches, so he addressed it and we cleaned it up,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said after his team’s 6-4 wins in 10 innings. “Unfortunately he was already in the hole versus Diaz.
“It’s just a fan coming here, thinking they’re helping the home club, but it’s just dirty.”
Mets manager Luis Rojas expressed a similar sentiment and asked fans to not interfere with player performance in that fashion.
Dodgers laser
Friday’s incident wasn’t the first between the Dodgers and Mets that involved a laser. In 2016, the Dodgers used a laser rangefinder to mark defensive positioning in the outfield at Citi Field, which the Mets had agreed to.
However, they went back on their decision and reported the Dodgers’ actions to MLB. The league investigated use of laser — which was permitted so long as it wasn’t during a game — and din’t impose any punishment on the Dodgers.
MLB did notify all clubs that golf tees, chalk and paint cannot serve as markers for positioning.
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