The New York Yankees-Boston Red Sox rivalry had an unexpected visitor on Friday, as a rogue squirrel made its way onto the field at Yankee Stadium.
The critter appeared in the top of the fourth inning, emerging near third base and quickly sprinting across the field. The squirrel then made its way to the pitcher’s mound, where it investigated the hole in the dirt made by the foot of Yankees starting pitcher Max Fried.
The squirrel’s presence briefly stopped play between the two teams, much to the crowd’s delight and the slight annoyance of Fried, who shooed the animal towards the other end of the field.
After a quick pause, the squirrel kept moving towards first base, before getting spooked and going around the back of the base. It finally exited the field and into the wall after traveling down right field for a while.
At the time that the squirrel stopped play, the Yankees and Red Sox were tied 0-0. Unfortunately, the squirrel itself couldn’t change the score: The teams were still tied 0-0 after the end of the fifth inning.
Squirrels themselves are not an uncommon appearance in MLB. In May, a scene-stealing squirrel interrupted a game at the Detroit Tigers’ Comerica Park. There’s also the infamous “Rally Squirrel” to which the St. Louis Cardinals partially credited their 2011 World Series Championship — enough, at least, that they got the creature put on the team’s championship rings.
This story will be updated.
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