Anthony Rendon is booed in his first at-bat since punching an A’s fan after refusing to comment on the altercation amid MLB investigation
Los Angeles Angels third baseman Anthony Rendon declined to comment Saturday as Major League Baseball investigates an incident he had with an Oakland Athletics fan Thursday night.
The incident occurred shortly after the final out of the Angels’ 2-1 loss at Oakland Coliseum on Opening Day.
In a 12-second video of the incident, Rendon grabs the fan’s shirt through a railing in Oakland and accuses him of calling him a ‘b****’. The fan denied the insults before Rendon called him a ‘son of a bitch’ and punched him but missed.
When asked about the incident before Saturday afternoon’s game, Rendon said: “I’m sorry, I can’t comment.” As Rendon ran onto the field for pregame warmups, he was asked what the mood was between him and the fans.
“Sorry,” Rendon said with a shrug and jogged off to get some exercise.
Rendón was hampered by injury during the 2022 MLB season, playing a paltry 47 games.
When he took the field for the first time in the game, Rendon was heavily booed during his at bat.
Angels manager Phil Nevin said irritating player-fan interactions are not uncommon.
“Unfortunately, this happens a lot,” Nevin said. ‘A lot of times we just don’t see it. You’re going to hear things all the time.
You hear a lot. At this time, I just don’t want to comment on the incident involving Anthony or anything that goes along with it.
When asked why he couldn’t comment, Nevin pointed to MLB’s ongoing investigation. Nevin also didn’t think the situation would be a persistent distraction for his players.
Maybe for the moment. But no, I don’t think so,’ Nevin said. ‘One thing I’ve said all the time is that we have a great group there.
‘The thing that made me most proud last year and then continuing through the spring is the way this team has come together and come together. And they’re all going to be together now.’
Rendon, 32, went 0 for 3 with two strikeouts and a walk on Thursday. The team had Friday off. He was hitting cleanup for Saturday’s game.
Rendon has been a huge disappointment for the Angels as he enters the fourth season of a $245 million, seven-year contract. He has just 20 home runs and 89 RBIs and a .250 average in 158 games over three seasons plus Opening Day.
Last season, a wrist injury helped limit Rendon to 47 games. He hit. 229 with five home runs and 24 RBIs.
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Third baseman Anthony Rendon was booed on his way to home plate during Saturday’s game.