"I love this place, it's a beautiful ballpark" - Texas Rangers manager walks back controversial comments about New York Yankees Stadium, claims it was a joke
Chris Woodward riled up the fans of the New York Yankees with recent comments about their iconic stadium that he is now trying to walk back after receiving some backlash. The Texas Rangers manager made a comment about a walk-off homer from Gleyber Torres that would have been an easy out in the majority of MLB ballparks.
Yankee Stadium is notorious for having a very shallow wall in right field, resulting in homers that would not be homers in a lot of stadiums. After these comments went viral and made Chris Woodward the villain of the day for the online masses. He attempted to clarify his meaning and intent.
The quote from Chris Woodward was posted via a tweet by Talkin' Yanks.
Chris Woodward says he was just jokin https://t.co/z937XETTlx
"Chris Woodward says he was just jokin" - @ Talkin' Yanks
"It was a joke" is a defense that has been used for as long as excuses have been around, and while it has been used with moderate success in the past, this has not calmed the New York Yankees fans who took it as an insult.
New York Yankees fans are quick to defend their ball club
Chris Woodward of the Texas Rangers was not wrong in anything he said. Yankee Stadium does have a unique layout that makes home runs easier in right field, but he pointed that out after the wrong hit.
Chris Woodward said that the hit that ended the game and resulted in a road defeat for his team would have been an out in 29/30 MLB fields, but that was incorrect.
An automated Twitter account records the distance of every home run hit, and compares it to every other stadium. It proves that the 369-foot homer would have been a home run in 26/30 MLB stadiums. The tweet can be seen below.
9th
Gleyber Torres vs John King
#RepBX
Home Run 💣
Exit velo: 106.5 mph
Launch angle: 28 deg
Proj. distance: 369 ft
This would have been a home run in 26/30 MLB ballparks
TEX (1) @ NYY (2)
🔻 9th https://t.co/nOhTfVxbe6
"This would have been a home run in 26/30 MLB ballparks" - @ Would it dong?
Hopefully, the statement of contrition from Chris Woodward will not be taken to heart by New York Yankees fans. Given that they won the game, there is really no harm done. This is unlikely to be the case however.
Unfortunately, sports fans are inherently very tribal, and signs of disrespect toward even minor details are not easily forgotten. The Texas Rangers and their manager can expect a harsh welcome next time they travel to Yankee Stadium.