Rick Porcello punches and breaks two TV screens, a breakdown
What Happened
Boston Red Sox starting pitcher Rick Porcello takes the mound in a crucial late-season matchup against the Tampa Bay Rays, both teams fighting for a Wild Card playoff spot. Porcello has struggled mightily in his recent outings, but he looks to turn things around and keep his team in the game. In the top of the first inning, Rays outfielder Austin Meadows rips a single to right field and catcher Travis d'Arnaud follows with an RBI single to give Tampa Bay an early 1-0 lead. Porcello appears frustrated, but he bears down and strikes out Rays infielder Yandy Díaz to limit the damage. As Porcello returns to the dugout, the cameras capture him punching two television monitors in a fit of anger over his performance. The outburst leaves his throwing hand injured, but he remains in the game, determined to keep his team competitive. Over the next few innings, Porcello battles to limit the Rays' offense, inducing groundouts and strikeouts to hold the deficit at one run. However, the Red Sox offense is unable to muster any runs against Rays starter Tyler Glasnow and the tension in the dugout continues to mount. In the sixth inning, Porcello's struggles return and he surrenders another run to the Rays. Frustrated by his inability to keep his team in the game, Porcello again lashes out, this time slamming his fist against the dugout wall. As the game progresses, the Red Sox bullpen is forced to pick up the pieces, but they are unable to stop the Rays from extending their lead. Porcello's final line is a disappointing one: 5.2 innings pitched, 6 earned runs. The Red Sox ultimately fall to the Rays, dealing a significant blow to their playoff aspirations. In the aftermath, Porcello's teammates and coaches express concern for his well-being, recognizing that his outbursts stem from the immense pressure and frustration he is feeling. The incident serves as a stark reminder of the emotional toll that the game can take on even the most seasoned players and the importance of maintaining composure and resilience in the face of adversity.
Full Transcript
Click timestamps to jump to that momentthere was a big series between the Rays
and Red Sox this week battling it out
for the wild-card maybe one of them
would take a run at the division
we'll see pretty Ricky's been brutal
lately six innings pitched fiber and run
0.16 earned runs 5.2 six earned runs six
innings pitched four and runs okay you
can work with that that's not bad five
innings pitched six earned runs gross
and then six innings pitched three
earned run to quality start vs the Red
Sox or Yankees built on that man build
on that because that is a brutal stretch
of starts zero fun not good joy boy
handsome strong g-man chew up first he's
got him one one ok collect yourself do
it come on start off good third pitch of
the game we're gonna get things rolling
in the right direction joy ropes one to
right field that's gonna one hop the
tiny wall Mookie's gonna get it pretty
Ricky's thinking [ __ ] not this again
Austin now up he's gonna strike him out
nice nice low and low an off-speed
fastball kind of right down the middle
but he swings through it now d'arnot's
up he's been a thorn in every one side
and he doesn't stop fastball puts it
right back up the middle Troy's gonna
chase his chubby ass around third and
he's gonna score to open it up for the
Rays uh-oh not good not this again but
Porcello grinds down gears down strikes
to him out there we go off-speed down
fastball up now he's got to have a sale
Garcia and he's gonna ground him out
only one run first inning one run you
can come back from that you can work
with that look he knows that he's not
that upset he's calm he's cool he's
collected oh just walking a little bit
it looks okay here we go
and bam turns out he's pretty frustrated
with himself still Red Sox have no more
bullpen cameras which you know might
help them out because their bullpens not
the greatest maybe they you want to keep
an eye on things out there taking a
quick slow-mo replay and yeah left-hand
hits first
maybe that's huge you know at Bull
Durham he told us you know crash Davis's
don't hit someone with your throwing
hand so the TV the left hand gets all
the power you can see the right side not
that bad now did this fix his starts
you're wondering hey maybe he punch in
the TVs
him better no it didn't 5.2 innings
pitched six earned runs in this game
gross