Too much noise from fans? Yankees manager complains to umps mid-game in empty park
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Throughout ballparks across the country, the odd sounds of foul balls pinging off empty seats and faux crowd noise has replaced the playful rowdiness of living, breathing fans who were once there to cheer on their beloved Major League Baseball teams in person.
At least, that’s how it is in MOST parks.
A group of Philadelphia Phillies fans has found a way around the global pandemic that halted the sports world in March and is becoming quite a nuisance to teams visiting Citizens Bank Park. Just ask the New York Yankees.
Yankees manager Aaron Boone was seen complaining to umpires during Thursday’s game about the noise floating in from outside the ballpark and addressed it following his team’s 5-4 loss.
“It sounded like a horn was going off as the pitch [was being thrown]. And you know, in the environment we’re in, it’s almost like a golf environment where that sudden thing can ... so I thought there was a timing element to it,” Boone said during a Zoom news conference with multiple media outlets. “I didn’t necessarily think they would be able to do anything about it. I didn’t necessarily know who or where it was coming from, but it was something I at least wanted to point out.”
While his description is understandable considering life these days, baseball isn’t a golf environment. This is a sport where bombastic, heckling fans are as common as the smell of spilled beer on cement and, you know, hot dogs. While COVID-19 put a stop to the usual ballpark shenanigans for the time being, it doesn’t mean fans can’t find creative ways to get under the visiting team’s skin.
These particular Phillies fans who happened to be a thorn in Boone’s side are called the “Phandemic Krew” (named after the coronavirus and outfielder Bryce Harper’s son Krew), WPVI reported. The fans have been kicking up dirt since the start of the season and doing all they can to back their team, including having a drum line and, of course, that airhorn.
Yankees outfielder Mike Tauchman said earlier in the week that he could hear the noise fans were making.
“You could hear it. It was pretty loud,” Tauchman said to multiple press outlets. “Philadelphia is known for having a pretty passionate fan base and those guys want to find a way to support their team even though they can’t be in the stadium and that’s how they chose to show their fandom tonight.”
The Krew also cheered on All-Star catcher J.T. Realmuto after he hit a three-run homer Thursday with chants of “Sign J.T.” as he circled the bases.
This story was originally published August 7, 2020 at 10:39 AM with the headline "Too much noise from fans? Yankees manager complains to umps mid-game in empty park."