Joe Maddon wears catcher's mask to presser after reporters get ‘testy’
After two media members reportedly had a spat during an interview with general manager Jed Hoyer on Friday, Chicago Cubs manager Joe Maddon showed up to his pregame press conference prepared: he donned a catcher’s mask.
It’s unclear from reports exactly which two reporters got into it with one another during a scrum with Hoyer, but one appears to be Newsradio 780’s George Ofman, who responded defensively to a tweet from CSN Chicago’s David Kaplan saying two reporters “snipe[d]” at each other during the interview. The other was apparently MLB.com’s Bruce Levine.
“I heard things got a little testy today,” Maddon reportedly said from behind his protective headgear.
Leave it to the famously good-humored Maddon to clear the tension. Or at least make fun of it. After all, this is the guy who promised the entire Cubs media contingent a “shot and a beer” after his introductory press conference at the start of the season.
Sounds like they could all use one today.
- Jeremy Woo
