Indians starting pitcher Trevor Bauer let his emotions get the best of him following a poor outing against the Kansas City Royals. As his manager came to the mound, Bauer turned around and hurled the baseball over the center-field fence in frustration.
Bauer was given a 3-0 lead before he even took the mound but could not hold it. He gave up one run in the bottom of the first inning, then two more in the bottom of the third. The Indians scored a run in the fourth, and one in the fifth, giving them a 5-3 lead.
Bauer could not get out of the fifth inning. He was taken out of the game after Nicky Lopez hit a two-run single, which gave the Royals a 7-5 lead.
As Indians manager Terry Francona walked toward the mound, Bauer took the baseball and threw it as hard as he could. The ball cleared the center-fence while an angry Francona ordered the pitcher to go back the dugout.
The Royals would go on to win the game 9-6.
After the game, Bauer apologized for his "childish" actions.
"First and foremost, I owe a sincere apology to all of my teammates, my coaching staff, the organization, and all of our fans for how I conducted myself today. It's unbecoming. It was childish, unprofessional. There's no place for it in the game. I'm happy it didn't result in any physical injury for anybody else. I realize I put people in danger."
He explained that he was angry with himself, and that his actions had nothing to do with the mistakes his teammates had made in the field during the game.
"I want to be clear that my frustrations were with myself and my inability to stop the situation and keep my team in the game. It was not directed at any of my teammates, even though I know that it came off that way. I love going to battle with my guys every day, and today I feel like I really let them down, both personally and professionally."
He promised that he will control his emotions in the future and won't do anything like that again.
"I'm an intense competitor, and that fire is what drives me, and today it completely consumed me, took over. I just wanted to say I'm sorry for how I behaved. I'll be better about it. It won't happen again."
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