Los Angeles Dodgers outfielder Yasiel Puig was yanked from Tuesday night’s game against the Cincinnati Reds for admiring a long RBI single.
Puig smoked a ball off the right field wall in the bottom of the sixth, scoring Trayce Thompson to give the Dodgers a 4-2 lead. When he hit it, Puig clearly thought he had an opposite-field home run, so he admired the shot for a moment. That probably cost him a double. You can see the video here.
Dodgers manager Dave Roberts ended up benching Puig, later telling reporters he wants his players to “play the game the right way” and be held accountable. Puig said he agreed with Roberts’ decision.
“It was a bad decision on my part,” Puig said through a translator, per Andy McCullough of the Los Angeles Times. “It was a good decision on the manager’s part. It shows not only myself, but the rest of my teammates, that you have to run out every single ball.”
Puig was later asked if that was the first time he had been pulled from a game for disciplinary reasons. His response was hilarious.
Quote of the night — Puig was asked if this was 1st time he'd been pulled from a game: "I don't remember. You'd have to ask Don Mattingly"
— Bill Plunkett (@billplunkettocr) May 25, 2016
Anyone who followed the early part of Puig’s MLB career knows that he did not get along with former Dodgers skipper Don Mattingly. Puig frequently got under Mattingly’s skin with his lack of focus. You can read more about how their relationship went south here.
It seems like the only thing stopping Yasiel Puig from consistently being one of the best players in baseball in Yasiel Puig. Kudos to Roberts for trying to send a message.
H/T Eye on Baseball
