They have been all the rage among professional athletes, but no longer will members of the Minnesota Twins be seen hovering around the clubhouse at Target Field.
Twins manager Paul Molitor announced Monday that the team has banned hoverboards, citing concerns about player safety.
“They just seemed a little too dangerous,” Molitor told the Star Tribune. “The guys had fun with them, but you’ve got to be aware that someone could get hurt.”
Molitor confirms that he banned hoverboards in the clubhouse this year. They were a big hit among the players late last season.
— Rhett Bollinger (@RhettBollinger) February 29, 2016
The craze started last year when relief pitcher Ryan O’Rourke rode one around the clubhouse. It didn’t take long until nearly every member of the bullpen owned one.
Molitor confirms hoverboards have been banned from the #MNTwins clubhouse: "I just didn’t like the direction it was taking last year."
— Mike BerardinoNDI (@MikeBerardino) February 29, 2016
Molitor certainly isn’t the first professional sports coach or manager to ban the two-wheeled contraptions. The Cleveland Cavaliers and Carolina Panthers banned them as well.
The hoverboards are an offshoot of Segways, which the Pioneer Press says are also banned in the Twins’ workplace.
Hardball Talk notes that it’s not even the first time the 59-year-old Moltior has banned technology from the club house. Last year he banned use of smartphones just before games.
