Kansas City Royals pitcher Jeremy Guthrie was unable to preserve a 3-3 in the sixth inning against the Toronto Blue Jays on Thursday, and he was not pleased about it. Guthrie gave up a two-out, solo home run to Colby Rasmus, who came into the game hitting just .194. The Jays went on to win 7-3.
After giving up a single and committing a throwing error, Guthrie managed to get out of the inning. As he was walking toward the dugout, he fired the ball into the upper deck in frustration.
“Our guys battled from a deficit, got the lead, I gave it back, we tied it, and I gave it back on the homer (to Rasmus),” Guthrie explained after the game, via Jeffrey Flanagan of Fox Sports. “It’s frustrating.”
Some have compared the stunt to a similar one former Detroit Tigers pitcher Fernando Rodney pulled in 2009, when he threw a ball into the press box. He was fined and suspended three games. This incident was a bit different, considering a fan sitting in the upper deck left the game with an unexpected souvenir.
@TheRealJGuts My daughter has the ball that you threw in the upper deck at last nights game :-) pic.twitter.com/SlpbOoqDBA
— Mandyy_805 (@myoutsey1) May 2, 2014
Guthrie even responded to the fan on Twitter and said “you’re welcome.”
“Repercussions? I’m not totally concerned with that,” Guthrie said. “I’m more concerned with repercussions from giving up two home runs. I view it a little differently (throwing it) toward a fan in the stands than the press box. I don’t want to hit (Royals television announcers) Ryan Lefebvre or (Rex) Hudler. At least not tonight.
“…I thought a fan upstairs deserved a ball. It’s always the fans down below who get the balls. Someone up on the third deck, cheap tickets, they deserve a ball.”
Personally, I don’t think it was a big deal. Guthrie didn’t throw the ball as hard as he could or put anyone in danger. The girl who caught the ball was obviously pumped. It worked out nicely.
