“He freaked out, or lost his cool, whatever you want to call it” - When Mike Piazza called out Carl Everett for headbutting umpire Ron Kulpa
A July game between Mike Piazza's New York Mets and Carl Everett's Boston Red Sox during the 2000 season got heated. Everett, known to crowd the line in the batter's box was told to step back by umpire Ron Kulpa.
He took exception to that but got back into the box anyway. After digging away the chalk, Kulpa paused the game and dug in his own line with his foot, and the rest was history.
Everett was fired up and was not shy in expressing his feelings to Kulpa. Everett was ejected and proceeded to slam his helmet and get into the umpire's face, headbutting him in the process. After the game, Piazza was critical of Everett's actions, via the Los Angeles Times.
"He freaked out, or lost his cool, whatever you want to call it," Piazza said.
Piazza defended Kulpa after the game. Piazza being a catcher, had a firsthand account of everything that went down.
"The umpire said, 'Carl, you've got to get in the box' before the first pitch. Then [Everett] drew a line and said, 'As long as I'm on the line I'm in,'" Piazza said.
Mike Piazza did not want to get caught in the crossfire between Carl Everett and Ron Kulpa
Mike Piazza was right in the action when the argument went down. However, he knew to keep his distance so he would not get caught in the crossfire between Carl Everett and Ron Kulpa.
"When he was getting upset, I was out there. He was not in a good mood. I didn't want to get hit with any of the crossfire," Piazza said.
That was a good idea as who knows what else could have happened if Piazza stepped in trying to play the peacemaker. he did not want to end up grabbing his nose like Kulpa.
Everett was eventually suspended for 10 games. He initially went to appeal the suspension but changed his mind and served it.
The 2000 season was a big one for Everett. While he interrupted his warm welcome with the Red Sox that year with the incident, he had a stellar year, especially at the plate.
In his first All-Star season, he hit .300/.373/.587 with a career-high 34 home runs and 108 runs batted in. Piazza was also an All-Star that season, leading the Mets with 38 home runs and 113 runs batted in.