Pablo Sandoval won’t be in the starting lineup Thursday for the Red Sox’ game vs. the Braves. 
 
 ATLANTA — A season drifting away from the Red Sox turned embarrassing on Thursday when third baseman Pablo Sandoval was benched for perusing a social media website during Wednesday’s loss against the Atlanta Braves. 
 
 Sandoval admitted to team officials that he was on the photo-sharing site Instagram during the seventh inning when he left the bench to return to the clubhouse. He left a trail of evidence by “liking” two photographs of a woman posting under the name of diva_legacy. 
 
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 Sandoval’s actions were first reported by the Barstool Sports blog. 
 
 “I know I [messed] up,” Sandoval said. “I made a mistake yesterday so I learned from that. I’m a human being; I make mistakes. I apologized to my teammates and the organization.” 
 
 The Red Sox signed Sandoval to a five-year, $95 million deal in November. He has hit .270 but with only six home runs and 23 RBIs. 
 
 “It’s disappointing. It’s disappointing because it’s a rule that is known by all,” manager John Farrell said. “It’s very disappointing. It’s not tolerable and as a result he’s on the bench. 
 
 “Obviously it’s a violation of MLB rules. It’s a violation of our own team policies. We handled it accordingly . . . I don’t know of any further discipline at this point in time.” 
 
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 The Red Sox have a team rule requiring cellphones, tablets, and other devices be shut off 30 minutes before first pitch. Major League Baseball has a similar rule and spokesman Mike Teevan said Sandoval’s actions are under review. 
 
 MLB’s on-field operations regulations mandate that players are prohibited from using devices within 30 minutes of the start of a game. Sandoval is not considered in violation of MLB’s social media policy because he did not post any messages. 
 
 Sandoval could face a fine from MLB. He has not been fined by the Red Sox. 
 
 Sandoval said he went to the clubhouse to use the bathroom and grabbed his phone out of habit. He claimed never to have done it before. 
 
 “Yes, first time. I made the mistake, I learned from that,” he said. “I’ll move forward and try not to do it any more. I let my teammates down. It ain’t going to happen no more.” 
 
 Sandoval first met with Farrell when he arrived at Turner Field then with Farrell and general manager Ben Cherington. He later spoke to his teammates. 
 
 “We had a meeting. I take the punishment. When you grow up you learn from a lot of things. You learn every single day of your life. I learned from that,” he said. 
 
 Said Farrell: “We’ve also handled some other things internally on the matter . . . That doesn’t at this moment take into account any financial discipline.” 
 
 Farrell chose not to define what “other things” involved other than they included both Sandoval and the rest of the players. 
 
 Cherington was brusque when asked about the situation. 
 
 “There’s nothing else to say. This happened. He made a mistake. He’s admitted it; he’s accountable for it. He talked to his teammates about it. John and I talked to him. He’s not playing today. That’s it,” he said. 
 
 In only his third month with the Red Sox, Sandoval added to the team’s rich history of illogical behavior. 
 
 In 2011, a group of starting pitchers admitted to feasting on fried chicken and beer during games. Mercurial left fielder Manny Ramirez disappeared into the Green Monster during a game in 2005, emerging as a pitch was being thrown. 
 
 Hall of Famer Wade Boggs once claimed he willed himself invisible to avoid a confrontation in a nightclub. He later went on national television and said he was a sex addict. 
 
 In 1987, local police tracked down righthander Oil Can Boyd during spring training for failing to return several rented pornographic videotapes. 
 
 Now comes the Panda’s Instagram imbroglio. 
 
 If the Red Sox were nine games ahead in the division instead of nine games behind, the incident likely would have been laughed off. Instead it became national news. 
 
 “This becomes a much greater focal point. I recognize that,” Farrell said. “That’s why players now in Boston for the first time are feeling that and living in it and living through it. It’s important that we continue to stick together as a group.” 
 
 As Farrell took questions about Sandoval, he sounded like an aggravated middle school teacher. 
 
 “They’re men. Grown men. Professionals,” he said. “We outline expectations and you trust that their commitment is on the field each and every day.” ||||| ATLANTA -- Boston Red Sox third baseman Pablo Sandoval was benched for Boston's 5-2 win Thursday by manager John Farrell after admitting that during Wednesday night's 5-2 loss to Atlanta he used his cellphone to click "like" on a woman's photographs that appeared in his Instagram feed. 
 
 A blogger for Barstool Sports was the first to tweet Wednesday that he had noticed the in-game social media activity from Sandoval. 
 
 Editor's Picks Edes: Sandoval sideshow could cost Farrell dearly Could Pablo Sandoval's social media sideshow be the undoing of Boston Red Sox manager John Farrell? 
 
 Sandoval said he used his cellphone after returning to the clubhouse to use the bathroom. 
 
 He said he met with Farrell and general manager Ben Cherington and apologized but was not fined. 
 
 "I know I f---ed up," Sandoval said Thursday. "I made a mistake [Wednesday]. I learned from that. I'm a human being, I made a mistake, so I apologize to my teammates, to the team, to the organization, the fans support. 
 
 "This is a thing that I pushed the ['like'] button at the wrong time. I hit a 'like.' I was in the bathroom, I pushed it at the wrong time. ... I just grabbed my phone and checked it." 
 
 Sandoval, who has since made his Instagram account private, said that was the first time he has ever done something like this during a game. 
 
 "It was the first time, so I take the mistake and learn from that. I move forward to try not to do it anymore. It's one thing I let my teammates down. Ain't going to happen no more, so I learned from that." 
 
 Sandoval said he was aware of the team rule against using cellphones during games and acknowledged that the incident was why he was not in Thursday's lineup. 
 
 "It's one thing I let my teammates down. Ain't going to happen no more, so I learned from that," Sandoval said of his in-game Instagram use. Jim Rogash/Getty Images 
 
 "I take the punishment," he said. "When you grow up, you learn from a lot of things. You grow up every single day in your life. You learn from that. 
 
 "It's their decision to make. I broke the team rules. I should be punished." 
 
 Asked if he had been fined, Sandoval said "not yet" and said he would be in the lineup Friday. 
 
 "It's a one-day thing. So I move forward to tomorrow to be on the field and help my team to win games," he said. 
 
 Said Farrell: "From our standpoint he's benched tonight. I don't know of any further discipline at this point in time or if there's anything else coming down from MLB, but we've also handled some other things internally on the matter." 
 
 MLB spokesman Michael Teevan said the situation is under review. Sandoval was in violation of MLB Standards and On-Field Operations Regulations, which covers player use of cellphones. It reads, in part, that: "Uniformed personnel, clubhouse staff and equipment staff are prohibited from using cellular phones, including any type of portable or mobile phone, laptop, texting device or similar portable equipment while on the bench, in the bullpens or on the playing field once batting practice has begun; and are prohibited from using such devices in the clubhouse within 30 minutes of the start of a game." 
 
 "John addressed that I don't have anything to add," said Cherington. "Something happened yesterday. Pablo's being punished by not playing tonight. Other than that, that's something John handles inside the clubhouse." 
 
 The incident comes at a time when the Sox have already been under fire for their poor performance this season. They have lost eight of their last 10 games to fall 10 games under .500, nine games behind the first-place Tampa Bay Rays in the American League East. Sandoval recently went through an 18-game stretch in which he batted .148 with one extra-base hit, though he has been hot of late, batting .452 during an eight-game hitting streak. 
 
 He also has been disappointing defensively, making nine errors, including two games in which he made two errors apiece, the second error coming in the ninth inning in each instance and leading to a Sox loss. 
 
 For some, this will conjure memories of the "fried chicken and beer" fiasco in 2011, when some players were eating chicken and drinking beer in the clubhouse in the season's final month, one in which the Sox went 7-20 and missed the playoffs by a game. Manager Terry Francona was fired after that season.
– Instagram user diva_legacy must feel flattered: Red Sox third baseman Pablo Sandoval liked her photos so much he couldn't wait until after Wednesday's game to click. He was benched yesterday for violating team and MLB rules by using his phone during the 5-2 loss to Atlanta, ESPN reports. Sandoval says he used his phone in the seventh inning after returning to the clubhouse to use the bathroom and admits he screwed up. Sandoval says this is the first time he has ever used his phone during a game. "I'm a human being, I made a mistake, so I apologize to my teammates, to the team, to the organization," he says. He hasn't been fined by the team, but he may face a fine from MLB, which bans players from using electronics within 30 minutes of the start of a game, reports the Boston Globe, which notes that the incident might have been shrugged off if the Red Sox "were nine games ahead in the division instead of nine games behind."