The Twins and Pirates game took an unexpected pause in the fifth inning when a rogue drone flew into the stadium, prompting the first drone delay in MLB history. José Berríos was dealing on the mound for the Twins and had the Pirates in check, but the game was stopped for about eight minutes as the drone hovered overhead. Players left the field, and event security admitted they had no idea how to handle the situation. The drone lingered for a bit, showing off its view, then eventually flew away, bringing the brief chaos to an end.
There was some awkwardness during the break—mascots pointing in the wrong direction, everyone wondering why there was a guy in a costume with no fans to entertain, and players standing around killing time. Once the airspace cleared, the players came back out and tried to get back into rhythm. Berríos returned but fell behind and walked a batter, leading people to joke about a possible drone curse. The moment passed quickly though, as Josh Bell popped out and the inning ended.
The Twins were up 5-1 at the time, and the drone interruption didn’t affect the outcome much. Fans have seen animal delays before—bees, squirrels, you name it—but this was something new. MLB now has another kind of stoppage to add to its growing list of odd game interruptions.