Mysterious Light In Center Field Briefly Delays Red Sox-Yankees Game
BOSTON (CBS) -- A flash of light pointed at home plate caused a brief delay in the Bronx on Sunday night, after Red Sox catcher Christian Vazquez pointed it out to an umpire.
The delay came in the bottom of the seventh inning, prompting a meeting among the umpiring crew, who gathered on the infield and pointed out toward center field. Vazquez had said something to home plate umpire Manny Gonzalez prior to the pitch that caused the delay, pointing out where the light was coming from.
The ESPN cameras eventually managed to find the source of the light:
What appears to be a light beyond the centerfield fence has been pointed out at Yankee Stadium. pic.twitter.com/cPsBUhHBSF
— CBS Sports (@CBSSports) July 19, 2021
In this era of sign stealing, there was some natural curiosity about what the origin of this light or reflection might have been. Yankees manager Aaron Boone, though, dismissed that possibility by saying Yankees catcher Gary Sanchez noticed the light as well.
"They said a red light they saw somewhere in the batter's eye. Gary said something about it, it happened to him when he was catching as well," Boone said after the Yankees' 9-1 win. "So I don't know, other than -- I don't even know where it came from, but they said there was a red light that flashed up there. And I have not gotten the full explanation, though, so I have no idea."
Boone added: "I don't know what it was or where it came from. I'm sure we'll try and get an explanation."
Red Sox manager Alex Cora obviously has a well-documented history of involvement with Houston's infamous sign-stealing operation in 2017. It was perhaps that history that led to him offering a small chuckle when asked about Sunday night's incident, which he dismissed as "no big deal."
"It was a light, or like a spotlight, coming from inside. Above the monuments, you know they have the windows. So there was like a red light flashing in between pitches. Then it was white," Cora said. "But, I mean, no big deal, to be honest with you. But [Vazquez] noticed it right away in the [D.J.] LeMahieu at-bat."
Cora said the light stopped flashing after the umpires pointed it out.