Jeffrey Maier’s Yankees Lore Returns on Anthony Volpe HR That Doesn’t Count
· Yahoo Sports
It was New York Yankees legend Yogi Berra who once coined the phrase, “Deja vu all over again.”
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Yes, that’s redundant, but that’s what made it such a famous Yogi-ism — and it may never have applied better than on Wednesday night in the Bronx.
Anthony Volpe hit a fly ball deep to left field — really the only difference about this play, making it more of a mirror scene to 30 years earlier. A fan reached over the fence and deflected it. The umpires had to make a controversial ruling.
At least for baseball fans of a certain age, it brought to mind Jeffrey Maier.
What Did Jeffrey Maier Do?
Jeffrey Maier was a 12-year-old fan in the right field bleachers during Game 1 of the 1996 ALCS as the Yankees hosted the Baltimore Orioles.
With the Yankees down a run, Derek Jeter hit a fly ball to right field in the eighth inning.
Replays later showed the ball wasn’t going to leave the ballpark, but Maier, seated in the front row, reached out his glove and deflected it away from the Orioles right fielder, Tony Tarasco.
The umpires gathered and ruled it a home run.
By the book, it should’ve been fan interference, but the umpires didn’t make that call.
Jeter was credited with a game-tying solo home run, and eventually that season, the Yankees went on to win the World Series.
Maier was famous in the Bronx, and an enemy for fans of the Orioles.
His impact is part of what made the call on Wednesday night for Volpe different.
Why Didn’t Anthony Volpe’s Homer Count?
Volpe’s fly ball was also touched by a fan in front of the wall as it dropped to earth.
This time, though, the umpires had instant replay — and the legacy of the incorrect Jeffrey Maier call hanging over their head.
They didn’t get this one wrong. They called it fan interference, but based on everyone’s positioning on the play, they gave Volpe a double.
The Yankees had been down two, and it would’ve been a two-run homer to tie it, 4-4.
Instead, the Yankees remained down 4-3 with Volpe awarded second base.
I DON’T THINK THAT SHOULD BE A HOME RUN
YOUR THOUGHTS? https://t.co/28OVSlA0GS
— MLB Walk Offs (@MLBWalk_Offs) October 8, 2026
Volpe was then stranded at second when Spencer Jones struck out swinging.
For a moment, the Yankees appeared to have tied the game, and then it swung the other way.
It was almost a bit of universal karma for what had happened with Maier 30 years ago.
There are many Yankees fans who weren’t even alive when Maier once managed to get Jeter a home run that was never going to leave the ballpark.
They were alive for this one, though, and it went in reverse — the Yankees had a run taken off the board.
And given that a loss on Wednesday night could end the Yankees’ season, this moment could cost them the chance to play deeper into October.
This article was originally published on HEAVY
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