Mookie Betts showed remarkable composure Tuesday night when two Yankees fans grabbed him as he jumped to catch a Gleyber Torres pop-up over the right-field wall in the bottom of the first inning of game 4.

The former Red Sox outfielder initially caught the ball from Torres before Austin Capobianco, 38, grabbed his glove with both hands and pulled the ball away. His seatmate, John Peter, then grabbed Betts’ other wrist and pulled him up.

Both men were quickly escorted out of Yankee Stadium, but Capobianco, a Yankees season-ticket holder, initially told ESPN that they were informed they were allowed to return for Game 5 on Wednesday.

The Yankees reversed course hours before the game and announced a ban on Capobianco and Peter due to their “blatant and unacceptable physical contact.”

However, they only did so because MLB intervened. Players’ Association executive director Tony Clark released a pointed statement, saying the union “will closely monitor both the response to this incident and the protective measures taken in the future.”

The incident sparked widespread outrage, with thousands of fans and several MLB players taking to social media to call for lifetime bans and condemn the behavior.

“The second you forcefully grab a player you should be thrown out and not let in,” A’s slugger Brent Rooker wrote on X (formerly Twitter).

“Honestly, he had every right,” said 2023 Red Sox first baseman Eric Hosmer in response to another X user who said Betts would have been justified in punching Capobianco in the teeth.

Betts last wore a Red Sox uniform a half-decade ago, but several current and former Boston players are still in his corner. One told the Herald it was “unacceptable” that the Yankees wouldn’t hand out life bans to Capobianco and Peter. Another praised Betts for how he handled the incident.

2004 Red Sox infielder Doug Mientkiewicz also weighed in on X.

“I heard the Yankees allowed these 2 idiots to attend game 5. Horrible look for you Yankees,” he posted on X. “This is about as bad as your race base and your defense is so bad!!

“People need to realize this could have been VERY bad. Betts could have been seriously injured. The wrist could have been broken in half,” Mientkiewicz added in response to another outraged X user.

ESPN’s Jesse Rogers reported that Capobianco and Peters will be refunded for their tickets, which now go to 15-year-old Calvin Young, who has pediatric cancer, and his family.

Alex Cora’s former Red Sox assistant blacklisted for tough management job

On Will Venable’s 42nd birthday on Tuesday, he was given one of the toughest jobs in baseball:

Manager of the Chicago White Sox.

Chicago is coming off a historic bad season. With their 121st loss, they broke the modern era losing record, set by the 1962 Mets.

The White Sox have long viewed Venable as a good managerial candidate. They interviewed him for the role before the 2023 season, but hired Pedro Grifol instead. Grifol was fired in early August, with Grady Sizemore taking the reins on an interim basis.

Chicago will be something of a homecoming for Venable, who spent several years with the Cubs, serving as special assistant to then-president Theo Epstein, first base coach (’18-19) and coach of the third goal (’20). He then served as Alex Cora’s bench coach for the Red Sox’ 21-22 seasons before spending two seasons as Bruce Bochy’s associate manager with the Texas Rangers, who won their first-ever World Series last year .

Red Sox prospect Brannon soars in Arizona Fall League

Red Sox prospect Brooks Brannon showed some serious power in the Arizona Fall League earlier this week, hitting a 468-foot home run at 113 mph right off the bat.

There have only been eight Major League home runs that have been hit this hard and this far. According to MLB, only Aaron Judge’s Aug. 2 out-and-back went farther and harder (477 feet, 117.5 mph).

The catcher, 20, is no stranger to showing off his immense power. According to SoxProspects.com, he led all high school hitters with 20 home runs and 91 RBIs in 34 games in 2022. He committed to North Carolina before the Red Sox selected him in the ninth round of this draft. that year.

In 54 games for Single-A Salem this year, he hit six homers, including a 482-footer on June 7. He is currently the Red Sox’s No. 27 prospect.

Originally published: October 30, 2024 at 8:15 p.m. EDT