PITTSBURGH — The Pittsburgh Pirates will be without outfielder Tommy Pham for their next game, as he serves a one-game suspension stemming from a past incident involving a fan at Angel Stadium in Anaheim, California.
According to the MLB transactions log, the suspension relates to an event that took place on April 23. During that game, Angels catcher Travis d’Arnaud hit a double off Pirates lefty Andrew Heaney, with the ball reaching the left-field wall. As Pham retrieved it, an Angels fan made contact with him using their glove.
Bothered by the interaction, Pham asked stadium security to remove the fan and made an obscene hand gesture during the exchange. The league has now handed down discipline as a result.
MLB’s Senior VP of On-Field Operations, Michael Hill, announced the suspension along with an undisclosed fine. Pham appealed the decision and was allowed to continue playing, but has since lost the appeal and will serve the suspension in the next game. This wasn’t Pham’s first controversial moment this year—during a March 5 Spring Training game against the Yankees, he was caught shouting a vulgar comment at a fan. Offensively, Pham has struggled in 2025, slashing .176/.262/.213 with an OPS of .475 in 34 games. He has just 19 hits in 208 at-bats, including four doubles and six RBIs, while drawing 12 walks and striking out 34 times.
Despite his woes at the plate, Pham has been a steady defensive presence, starting 26 games in left field with 44 putouts in 46 chances and several highlight-reel catches. The Pirates signed him to a one-year, $4 million deal with $250,000 in incentives back on Feb. 6. With him out, the team will turn to Matt Gorski, Ji Hwan Bae, Alexander Canario, or Andrew McCutchen to fill the left field role for the night.
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