Keon Broxton hits the ump in the face with his batting glove, a breakdown

Aug 27, 2019 1.6M views 2:03

What Happened

During a 2019 Yankees-Mariners game, Seattle outfielder Keon Broxton got rung up on a 3-2 pitch that he felt was off the plate. Frustrated by what had been an inconsistent strike zone all night, Broxton put on a full show walking away: a 360-degree bat flip, a no-look helmet toss, and finally a no-look batting glove toss. The problem was where the glove landed. It sailed back and clipped the home plate umpire on the cheek, which drew an immediate ejection.

Why This Matters

Umpires have wide discretion to toss a player for anything they view as making contact or showing them up, and a sweaty glove to the face checks both boxes. Intent rarely matters here. Whether Broxton meant it or not, the rulebook treats physical contact with an official as an automatic out, and umpires almost never let it slide because tolerating one stray glove invites worse. Broxton was a bench piece for Seattle in 2019, a journeyman outfielder fighting for at-bats, so the optics of getting run for a tantrum after a called third strike didn't help his case for playing time. The takeaway is simple: vent however you want, but keep your equipment away from the man calling balls and strikes.

With 1.6M views, this one ranks in the top 9.5% of all 1,583 Jomboy breakdowns, proof that a stray batting glove travels further than most home runs.

Key Moments

Who / What Is Involved

Players: Keon Broxton. Teams: Mariners.

Key Terms Mentioned

Full Transcript

Click timestamps to jump to that moment

we've got an objection in this Yankee's

Mariners game and it is a fun when it's

brought to you by our friends at

Roosevelt shirt RSV LTS shirts all right

3 2 pitch is it outside he gets rung up