Anthony Rizzo let out his frustration on the Yankees dugout.
With the team’s offense sputtering — they have scored eight runs in the past six games — the first baseman was pushed over the edge on Monday night by a controversial call in the third inning.
Rizzo was hit by a curveball by Rays starter Ryan Yarbrough, but umpire D.J. Reyburn ruled that Rizzo did not make an attempt to get out of the way. The at-bat continued, and Rizzo would strike out two pitches later.
When he returned to the dugout, YES Network cameras caught Rizzo slamming his helmet repeatedly.
“Whenever you feel like you got screwed over on a call, at any time it’s annoying,” Rizzo said. “We’re out here competing at the highest level. I’m up here talking to [the media]. I feel like umpires have zero accountability when they miss something like that.”
Yankees manager Aaron Boone went out and argued the call for several minutes, which may have kept an irate Rizzo from getting ejected after his initial reaction to Reyburn’s decision.
“Bad call,” Boone said. “Where’s he supposed to go?”
The 4-0 loss to Tampa Bay was the Yankees’ fifth defeat in the past six games.