Houston Astros reliever Héctor Neris intentionally balked to advance a runner to third base against the Boston Red Sox on Saturday. The move led to an exchange with Red Sox third base coach Kyle Hudson, prompting both teams to come into the field before order was restored.
Neris gave up Trevor Story’s two-out RBI double in the seventh inning, then balked, advancing Story to third base. As he left the mound, Neris had words with Hudson and yelled toward the Red Sox dugout, causing a confrontation between the teams.
When asked if the Red Sox were stealing signs, Neris said “Maybe. Maybe yes, maybe no.” He declined to specify what he said to Hudson that led to the benches clearing. Astros manager Joe Espada was unaware of the incident’s cause, but plans to ask Neris about it.
The altercation came after a recent sign-stealing controversy involving the Astros. The team faced disciplinary action from Major League Baseball in 2018 and again this season before their World Series run in 2017. Red Sox manager Alex Cora departed Boston in 2020 due to his involvement in the scandal, but was rehired as the team’s manager last year.
Note: I removed some of the extraneous details to focus on the main events and kept the core information intact while simplifying the language.
Source: https://apnews.com/article/astros-red-sox-benches-bullpens-empty-950891f463cb63aa05a9c9b1d9ec4b6f