The football player in Stearns, however, was still evident. On June 12, 1980, two inebriated spectators jumped onto the playing field. While police were unable to catch them, Stearns grew frustrated and ran from behind the plate onto the third base side of the infield, tackling and subduing one of them. At Shea Stadium on July 4, 1980, Montreal Expos rookie Bill Gullickson sailed a pitch over Mets first baseman Mike Jorgensen's head in the second game of a doubleheader. Jorgensen didn't appreciate this as he had been the victim of one of the worst beanball injuries in baseball history the previous season with the Texas Rangers, and motioned toward Gullickson his disapproval. Stearns, who wasn't even in the line-up for this game, charged out of the dugout and grabbed Gullickson from behind by the neck. Gullickson responded by clocking Stearns in the face with three solid punches.