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You may have seen some talk around social media and sports sites like ours about how there was a “flashing” controversy involving some fans who attended Game 5 of the 2019 World Series between the Houston Astros and Washington Nationals and were subsequently banned by Major League Baseball after the incident caught on camera.
If so, and if you’ve wondered what was up with all of that, don’t be alarmed. As always, we’re here to help with a breakdown of the what’s going on.
What happened here?
During Game 5 of the World Series, fans everywhere noticed on the broadcast that a pair of women stood up in their seats near home plate and pulled up their shirts. Astros hurler Gerritt Cole was in the middle of pitching to Ryan Zimmerman at the time.
Who are they?
Lauren Summer (brand executive) and Julia Rose (founder) are executives for a digital magazine called Shagmag.
Why did they do it?
Summer claimed the stunt was for breast cancer awareness, “to help us pay off women’s medical bills” because a subscription to the site would result in “proceeds (going) directly to women with breast cancer.”
Were they disciplined by MLB?
Yep. The pair shared letters sent by the league in which they were informed they “violated the fan code of conduct” and that they were banned indefinitely from every MLB stadium and facility.
An MLB spokesperson confirmed to USA TODAY Sports that those letters are real.
