Remember that wild reel from comic Jordan Jensen flying around social media? The one claiming our guy Julio Rodríguez obliterated a pigeon at Yankee Stadium on August 13, 2026? Well, hold up, Mariners faithful, because Julio himself just set the record straight: no pigeon was killed on his watch. After that video hit Jensen’s 822 thousand Instagram followers, we had to get the truth. This was too good a story, too much like the infamous Randy Johnson incident, and frankly, too “Mariners as central character” for it not to be exaggerated.
The Real Story: Concussed, Not Gone
We sat down with Julio just hours after that reel started making the rounds. He hadn’t even seen it yet! Watching it with him, he rolled his eyes at Jensen’s long explanation of what a “Mariner” actually is, saying “that’s not funny.” But he loved the part about his interaction with the crowd: “Of course I throw a ball to the kids. Of course I do that.” That’s our Julio! The moment the video got to the pigeon part, though, Julio was immediate: “No way,” he said. “No, no, no. No way.” Our star center fielder confirms the ball did strike one of a flock of pigeons scavenging for snacks in the outfield during the late innings of that day game. The bird fell, yeah, but it was concussed, not dead. Absolutely no “poof of feathers” like the old Randy Johnson story, according to Julio.
Mariners bullpen catcher Justin Novak backs Julio up on this one. Novak was right there, and he saw the grounds crew pick up the dazed bird. They even put it in a shaded spot in the Mariners bullpen, under a wall overhang, so it could recover from the shock. Novak said they checked on it throughout the game, and as far as anyone knows, that pigeon is totally fine. “It was just sitting there like, bro, what?” Novak laughed. This bird is living to fly another day, people!
Yankees Fans Prove They’re The Worst
But here’s the kicker, and this part both Julio and Novak confirmed as 100% accurate and backed up by film: the Yankees crowd started chanting “pigeon killer” at Rodríguez! Can you believe it? They even yelled, “we love pigeons!” Novak said Julio was being playful with them in the next inning after a routine flyout from Trent Grisham. It was the only ball that reached him in the outfield for the rest of the afternoon. Talk about a brutal welcome to the Bronx.
So, while Jensen’s reel had everyone talking, it turns out the biggest liars in this whole thing are those Yankees fans themselves, trying to mess with our guy. Forget that noise. Julio did what he always does: he played hard, showed heart for the kids, and yes, might have accidentally bonked a bird, but he certainly didn’t finish it off. As for the Mariners, we recently saw the Athletics take a 7-4 win from us, but don’t let that get you down. We’re still here, still fighting, and always, always backing our guys. The pigeon is fine, and so is our team. Let’s keep that energy going, Emerald City!
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by Yahoo Sports.
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