Report: Yankees' Gardner fined for violating pace-of-play rules
New York Yankees left fielder Brett Gardner was reportedly fined $2,000 by Major League Baseball in June for repeated pace-of-play violations earlier in the season, according to Newsday's Anthony Rieber.
Gardner, who declined to comment, was fined for taking too long to get into the batter's box, though no specifics were reported. Under the new pace-of-play rules introduced for the 2018 campaign, any batter leading off an inning must leave the on-deck circle with 20 seconds remaining on the inning-break timer, while another rule implemented in 2015 stipulates that batters must keep at least one foot in the box between pitches.
On average, Gardner - who has been pencilled into the leadoff spot 61 times this season - has taken 24.8 seconds between pitches, according to FanGraphs, tying him for 53rd-slowest among qualified hitters.
Heading into Tuesday's game against the Atlanta Braves, Gardner is hitting .251/.346/.365 (95 OPS+) with five home runs, 11 doubles, and seven stolen bases in 68 contests. The 34-year-old has struggled of late, going just 10-for-54 (.185) with one extra-base hit over his last 15 games.