NEW YORK CITY (TND) — A New York Little League coach on Monday accused Yankees star outfielder Aaron Judge of ignoring his team during the MLB Little League Classic.
The annual game, played during the Little League World Series, is intended to excite young players about the game of baseball. The Yankees lost this year’s matchup 3-2 to the Detroit Tigers.
The team also apparently lost the respect of South Shore Little League coach Bob Laterza, who claimed Judge went out of his way to dodge interactions with his players. Judge neither appeared during a Yankees visit to the team’s hotel nor acknowledged the cheering kids who sat behind home plate during the game.
“How about turning around or wave to New York and the kids that think you’re a hero?” Laterza remarked to a Staten Island newspaper. “They are the ones who pay your salary.”
“They were disappointed,” he continued. “Maybe he’ll want to make up for it and come and see them”.
Members of the Yankees who took time to sign autographs, such as pitcher Gerrit Cole, were “very kind and considerate,” Laterza noted.
Evidence circulating social media Tuesday appears to contradict Laterza’s claims, however. One clip shows Judge greeting a crowd of enthusiastic fans and signing an autograph.
Another image appears to show Judge seated near a Little League player on a bus.
Judge’s agent could not be reached for comment. The New York Yankees did not immediately reply to a request for comment.
