The New York Yankees and Blue Jays faced off last night in a heated AL East battle. And in the eighth inning, a controversial call involving Cody Bellinger sparked a dispute among fans on both sides.
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When Cody Bellinger came to the plate, a 90 mph fastball from Justin Bruihl came in, almost hitting him on the chest plate. And he thought he might get to first base. But what the umpire did next created chaos.
The umpire called it a swing. That decision ended the inning and took away the chance for a tying run. What could have been a rally-ending HBP turned into a strikeout in an instant. And, the moment Talkin’ Yanks shared this clip on their X account, the discussion from both ends started in the comment section.
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The umpire ruled that Cody Bellinger swung at this pitch that hit him which ended the inning pic.twitter.com/U3w0KEwoh7
— Talkin’ Yanks (@TalkinYanks) July 4, 2025
As per the MLB Rule 5.05(b)(2), a batter who gets struck by a pitch must try to avoid it to get to first base. And as per the umpire, Cody Bellinger swung, which meant he tried to hit the ball. With that, the Blue Jays beat the Yankees by 8-5.
The Birds of the North have won all four games! It started with Game 1, which they won by 5-4, and then they beat the Yankees by 12-5 in Game 2. Credits? To several clutch singles from Vladimir Guerrero Jr. Game 3 was a nail-biter that resulted in an 11–9 win. They started strong with an 8–0 lead. But the Yankees fought back; still, they lost.
The Yankees not only lost the series, but they are now in second place in the table with a record of 48-39. The Blue Jays are now in first place with a record of 49-38.
Amidst all these, the Cody Bellinger incident quickly got a lot of attention. Even though the game is done, a whole new game has started on X, and everyone has their own thoughts…
Fan reactions: A wave of opinions
It was the fourth game, and the Yankees fought hard to win, but they couldn’t. And the Blue Jays? They’re riding high! A direct jab at the Yanks. “This is objectively the correct call but you whiny little babies are gonna get mad at it.” If you look at the rule, the minimal swing can go against the batter. And seemingly, Cody Bellinger made the full swing.
Okay, he swung it, but what about the ball landing on foul territory? “But even if he did swing, the ball was foul.” As per the rule book, if the ball isn’t caught and moves elsewhere or into the foul zone, it’s a foul. This means that the ball is dead and the plate appearance continues. And so continues the controversy…
Is this rule even logical? A question was raised, “Why does swinging make a difference?? If you get hit, you get hit. Who cares if you swing? Stupid rule.” It brings to light the conflict between complex rules and common sense! If one gets hit, swing or no swing – that shouldn’t make any difference! This keeps the discussion about the rule going.
Maybe it was that easy—the umpire saw the swing and made a quick call. As one fan said, “Nothing for the umpire to ‘rule’ lol that was a clear swing.” In fact, after the call, there was no argument or appeals on the field.
And this is connecting the dots as one fan observed, “you can tell it was the right call because not even bellinger or even boone are mad.” Tbh, it makes sense. We know Boone is not someone who will sit quietly in the dugout if anything goes wrong on the field. But he didn’t flinch! Foul or not – the debate does make sense!
Cody Bellinger’s “swing” may not make or break the Yankees’ sweep. But one thing is clear: How tense baseball is at its core, the push-and-pull between judgment, rules, and fan expectations.
Written by
Edited by
Ahana Chatterjee