The moment was hilarious because it was so relatable.
Pittsburgh Pirates infielder Rodolfo Castro and third-base coach Mike Rabelo stood and stared, mortified, at a smartphone that had mistakenly made its way onto a Major League Baseball field.
Even third base umpire Adam Hamari had the perfect reaction, pointing at the phone that had come loose out of Castro’s back pocket during a slide, trying not to giggle at the absurdity of the situation.
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Those around the sport cringed along with them.
“That’s obviously not something that should happen,” Yankees manager Aaron Boone said.
Yet it did. Just like it does to pretty much all of us. Who hasn’t had their ringer go off at a wedding, a funeral, school or church? Or been at the apex of a cannonball into the pool, only to realize their phone was still in their back pocket?
C’mon, be honest.
This faux pas just happened to be at a televised big league game, creating a video clip seen by millions.
“I just remember getting dressed, putting my pants on, getting something to eat, using the restroom,” Castro said through a translator after the Pirates lost 6-4 to Arizona. “Never did it ever cross my mind that I still had my cellphone on me.”
It’s far from the first time a phone has made a cameo on a pro sports field. One of the most famous examples came nearly 20 years ago when New Orleans Saints receiver Joe Horn pulled out a flip phone — Remember those? — that he had hidden in the padding around the goalpost and then acted like he was taking a call after scoring a touchdown.
Of course, there are legitimate reasons MLB doesn’t want phones on the field.
MLB has cracked down on technology use by players since the Houston Astros used live TV feeds to steal opposing teams’ signs during their run to the 2017 World Series championship and part of the subsequent season.
Astros general manager Jeff Luhnow and then-manager AJ Hinch were suspended for the 2020 season. The Astros also were fined $7 million and forfeited their first- and second-round picks in 2020 and 2021.
That kind of discipline obviously isn’t warranted in this situation, but phones on the field are still a no-no. MLB hadn’t announced any sort of punishment for Castro as of Wednesday afternoon.
“I’m sure we’ll hear from the league, but I feel like everybody, including the umpires — which, again, they handled it great — it was a young kid who made a mistake and put his phone in his pocket,” Pirates manager Derek Shelton said. “There was no attempt to use it or do anything with it.”
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