Pace-of-play fines perturb Yankees outfielder Gardner
New York Yankees outfielder Brett Gardner says he was fined “thousands of dollars” in June by Major League Baseball for breaking new rules regarding the pace of play.
Jun 24, 2018; St. Petersburg, FL, USA; New York Yankees left fielder Brett Gardner (11) scores a run during the fifth inning against the Tampa Bay Rays at Tropicana Field. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports
Gardner said Tuesday before a matinee with the Atlanta Braves that he’d told his agent to deal with the fines and leave him out of it. The New York Post reported that Gardner was fined about $3,500 in June.
“Nothing I say about that is going to do me any good,” he said.
Baltimore Orioles outfielder Adam Jones told Sirius XM Radio he was fined an estimated $50,000 last season for pace-of-play violations.
Gardner said he was fined for taking too long to get into the batter’s box.
“My agent started taking care of it,” Gardner said. “I told them don’t talk to me about it. I’ve got more things to worry about than taking three seconds too long to get to the box. Somebody else can (throw pickoff throws to first base) 27 times in a game and waste 15 minutes of everybody’s time, and I get fined thousands of dollars taking three seconds too long to get in the box.”
—Field Level Media