Neither man would back down.
According to a Fox News report, Boston Red Sox reliever Kutter Crawford and Philadelphia Phillies left-hander Matt Strahm refused to leave the field after the National Anthem —both wanting to be the last player to walk off.
But they pushed it a little too far. They were both ejected and fined after umpire warnings.
From Fox News:
Strahm, who used to be teammates with Crawford and the rest of the Red Sox, explained the situation to WEEI’s Rob Bradford.
“Zero of it was planned,” he said. “Just, anthem was over, and I looked across, and Kutter kind of gave me a grin, and I knew exactly what that grin meant, so [I] just stood there.
“If you know me, you know competition is everything to me, so kind of felt like I was being called out right there. Looking back on it, probably not the wisest decision I’ve made in my big-league career.”
Watch the clip above. More over at Fox News:
MLB pitchers ejected, fined after national anthem standoff goes too far https://t.co/m7nMdAKFRn
— Fox News (@FoxNews) May 8, 2023