The Yankees fan who ripped the ball from Mookie Betts’ glove at the World Series has since received social-media vitriol, profanity-riddled voicemails and even a package containing feces, he said in a new interview.
In his first comments since MLB banned him indefinitely, Austin Capobianco told The Athletic he regrets the incident that occurred during Game 4 of the World Series at Yankee Stadium.
“I’m a hero in Yankees land. I’m a villain in America,” Capobianco, 38, told the outlet’s Brendan Kuty. “I don’t really care. I just want to be forgotten about. That’s it. I want people to forget about me.”
Capobianco garnered national attention when he grabbed Betts’ glove and removed the ball after the Dodgers’ right fielder made a first-inning catch near the wall down the right-field line. Amid the struggle, Capobianco’s friend John Hansen held Betts’ wrist.
Right-field umpire Mark Carlson called fan interference, resulting in an out, and Capobianco and Hansen were quickly ejected from the stadium.
They were banned from Game 5 of the World Series, and last month, the league indefinitely banned both men from attending any MLB stadiums or affiliated events, saying their actions “posed a serious risk” to Betts.
But that’s not the only form of punishment Capobianco has received.
He told The Athletic he’s been bombarded with hundreds of text messages and voicemails from strangers, along with multiple anonymous packages.
Among them was a box sent to Capobianco’s parents’ house in Connecticut that he did not open but said, based on the company attached to the return address, contained poop.
“All the stuff my family has had to deal with because of me,” Capobianco said. “The nonstop phone calls. The people sending me pictures of their ugly looking penises. The packages.”
Betts initially downplayed the incident, saying after Game 4 that he was “fine,” but he later acknowledged on Peacock’s “Back That Year Up 2024” that he briefly considered throwing the ball at the fans before taking the high road.
The Yankees won Game 4 but went on to lose the World Series in five games. Capobianco said he wants to speak with MLB this year about figuring a way to speed up his ban.