Plenty of media coverage has surrounded New York Yankees slugger Aaron Judge’s chase for the single-season franchise and American League home run record. Sunday’s game against the Red Sox entered a lengthy rain delay during Sunday Night Baseball on ESPN, which Buster Olney said ESPN had no part in the delay lasting longer than it should have.
A report by Brendan Kuty of NJ.com claims ESPN pressured MLB to keep the game in a rain delay to give him the chance to hit his 61st homer on their network. Kuty reported “Throughout the delay, the Yankees and the Red Sox each lobbied the league to declare the game over as the forecast kept getting worse, the person said. But ESPN kept the pressure on.”
ESPN MLB Reporter Buster Olney pushed back on the claim.
Olney flat out denied the accusation, saying “it’s simply not true” to one user before another user claimed it was Olney’s word against Kuty’s. Olney then set the record straight.
Kuty’s report claims the rain delay only ended when Yankees manager Aaron Boone threatened to pull Judge from the game during the rain delay. When the threat of Judge being removed from the game reached MLB and ESPN authorities, according to Kuty, did the one hour and 38 minute delay end and the game was called.
