Crazy things happen outside NFL stadiums. The Baltimore Ravens stadium has already seen two port-a-potty deaths this year, and it's not strange to see fights break out at tailgates or even inside the stadium. Heck, you might even see Marshawn Lynch handing out shots hours before game time.
At Gillette Stadium, you can expect to come across similar occurrences. But how often do you hear of a veteran MLB pitcher being arrested over a fanny pack dispute?
Free agent pitcher Rich Hill, who spent the 2019 season with the Los Angeles Dodgers, was arrested before the New England Patriots game against the Buffalo Bills on Saturday after allegedly interfering with police while wife Caitlin Hill was arrested and put in a prisoner transport vehicle for disorderly conduct and trespassing charges.
MLB Pitcher Rich Hill Arrested
According to The Boston Globe, the dispute was over a fanny pack that stadium officials wouldn't let her take in to Gillette Stadium.
"She was trying to enter the stadium with an oversized bag and she had been told several times, 'no,'" said Robert Bolger, chief administrator for Foxborough police. "She tried several times to go to a different gate. She was ordered to leave the property."
"He saw her as they were trying to get her into a van to bring to the police station, and he started to interfere with the officers. He was told several times to back up and he would not. And he ended up getting arrested."
The NFL is very strict regarding bringing bags into stadiums, and fanny packs are most definitely prohibited. (So are most purses, backpacks, briefcases, computer bags and camera bags.)
Hill didn't apologize and explained that the event prior to the Patriots-Bills game was "overblown" in a statement from his attorney.
"Despite Saturday's events, my great respect for law enforcement remains unchanged," Hill said in a statement. "However, seeing my wife handcuffed for a problem that started because of her fanny pack was extremely difficult for me to witness.
"This was all overblown and we are glad to have it behind us."
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Both the husband and wife's criminal charges were reportedly lowered to civil infractions by the Norfolk district attorney's office, and Rich Hill's resisting arrest charge was dismissed. The two had to pay $500 fines, per ESPN.
Hill was born in Boston and spent four seasons of his 15-year MLB career with the Boston Red Sox. He pitched for the Dodgers from 2016-19 and is currently a free agent.
On Friday, he was honored in Boston with the Tony Conigliaro Award, awarded to a major leaguers "who has overcome adversity through attributes of spirit, determination and courage that were trademarks of Tony C."
