Jeffrey Maier (born 1984) is known for directly affecting the outcome of Game 1 of the American League Championship Series between the New York Yankees and the Baltimore Orioles.

On October 9, 1996, the Yankees were behind the Orioles 4-3 in the bottom of the eighth inning. Maier reached over the fence separating the right field stands and the field of play and caught a deep fly ball hit by Yankee shortstop Derek Jeter. The ball appeared to be heading into the glove of Baltimore outfielder Tony Tarasco but Maier intercepted the ball and pulled it into the stands. While baseball fans are permitted to catch (and keep) balls hit into the stands, they are not supposed to touch balls that are still in play, especially ones which the players are attempting to field. "Fan Interference" with such balls is against the rules and is normally ruled an out. By sticking his glove over the wall and catching a ball that would have (presumably) been caught, Maier appeared to be committing such an interference.

However, right field umpire Rich Garcia immediately ruled the play a home run, under the protest of Tarasco and Orioles manager Davey Johnson. The game was thus tied 4-4, went into extra innings and ended when Yankee outfielder Bernie Williams hit a game-winning home run in the bottom of the eleventh inning. The Orioles protested the Maier interference play immediately after the conclusion of the game but was denied by the Commissioner of Baseball, Bud Selig, because judgment calls cannot be protested. After viewing a video replay later that day, Garcia admitted that fan interference should have been called. The play was left to stand and the Yankees went on to win the series against Baltimore 4-1 as well as the World Series against the Atlanta Braves.

Maier later played baseball at Wesleyan University.

External links

• MLB.com article
• CNNSI article