The Jeffrey Maier incident occurred during Game 1 of the 1996 American League Championship Series between the New York Yankees and the Baltimore Orioles.
Twelve-year-old Jeffrey Maier deflected a batted ball, hit by Derek Jeter, into the Yankee Stadium stands for what umpires ruled to be a home run, rather than fan interference.
"[3] On October 9, 1996, the Yankees trailed the Orioles 4–3 in the bottom of the eighth inning when shortstop Derek Jeter hit a deep fly ball to right field.
[5] Right field umpire Rich Garcia immediately ruled the play a home run, tying the game at 4–4, despite the protest of Tarasco and Orioles manager Davey Johnson (the latter was ejected in the ensuing argument).
[7][8][9] Had Garcia called spectator interference, he would have then used his own judgment to determine what the most likely outcome of the play would be – either an out or awarding Jeter a given number of bases.