Mariners outfielder Victor Robles throws bat at pitcher after being hit by five pitches, a breakdown
What Happened
Washington Nationals outfielder Victor Robles is on a rehab assignment with a minor league team, looking to return to the major leagues after an injury. In his first at-bat, Robles laces a double into right-center field, showing he's ready to compete. However, his next few plate appearances take a turn for the worse. In his second at-bat, Robles is hit by a pitch from opposing pitcher Joey Estes. Visibly frustrated, Robles tosses his bat in anger. This is just the beginning of a contentious series between Robles and Estes. Over the next few games, Robles is hit by pitches a total of five times, much to his dismay. Robles' third plate appearance results in a groundout, but the real action comes in his fourth at-bat. Facing Estes again, Robles is plunked for the fourth time. Enraged, he kicks the dirt and yells, clearly upset about being targeted by the pitcher. Robles' fifth plate appearance is a different story, as he simply stands in the batter's box, refusing to swing at any pitches, not wanting to risk being hit again. A couple days later, Robles faces Estes once more. This time, the umpire calls a foul ball on a pitch that hits Robles' arm. The Nationals' manager comes out to argue on Robles' behalf, but the call stands. In Robles' next at-bat against Estes, the pitcher hits him in the shoulder, and Robles reacts by angrily throwing his bat toward the mound. This prompts the benches to clear, as both teams rush to the field. Robles is escorted to the dugout to prevent further escalation. Once there, he starts throwing sunflower seed bags onto the field, further expressing his frustration. Robles later apologizes, explaining that his mother's recent passing has been weighing on him, though he acknowledges that being hit by pitches multiple times is what truly sparked his outburst. The incident is sure to result in a suspension for Robles, which will further delay his return to the major leagues. However, his teammates and fans can understand the outfielder's boiling emotions after enduring such a barrage of hit-by-pitches during his rehab assignment.
Full Transcript
Click timestamps to jump to that momentVictor Robles major leaguer on a rehab assignment in his first pitch he sees he laces into right
center for a double this breakdown is brought to you by SeatGeek and the rehab assignment
isn't exactly what he wanted the next at bat he takes a strike and then he gets hit by Estes and
it's like hey I'm trying to get healthy and return to the bigs I'd rather not take balls
to the chest doesn't like it we got a ball ball balls big swing and miss ball foul ball ball foul
ball fair ball but a ground out so three played appearances a hit hit by pitch and a ground out
his fourth played appearance hit by pitch four played appearances in his first rehab game and
he got hit in half of them which he didn't enjoy so he tosses the bat more
more
bat tossing later the next game he comes back it's the same team he's facing so his first
played appearance of the next game foul ball swing and a miss 0-2 another swing stays alive
another 0-2 pitch hit by the pitch and now he's mad he's kicking he's yelling that's five played
appearances and he got hit in three of them get me out of the minors I want pitchers you can aim
maybe that's what he's saying maybe that's what he's thinking
he's feeling pain and upset because that's ridiculous this one hits him right in the arm
fuck oh what are we doing next at bat nowhere near the plate no interest in swinging or even
attending this at bat standing way in the back and just taking pitch I'll just track pitches then
if you guys are gonna hit me I'll just track that was that was a two strike pitch and he just starts
walking away before the pitch is delivered he's like see you later I do not want you to hit me
goodbye that's pretty good pretty good awareness this is where he was standing before and this is
where he stood after just nope I don't want to get hit again you could fit two of them in the same
batter's box so then he comes back this is a couple days later but again playing the same team
and facing
Joey Estes again the pitcher who hit him the very first time and he's gonna get hit with that pitch
but they call it a foul ball they might have called it a swing too they definitely called a
foul ball did not hit the bat the bat it hit his arm but he did somewhat swing he's going he tries
to stop his hand comes off the bat but his left hand follows through but that's the fourth time
he's gotten hit two now by Estes the pitcher on the mound he is not enjoying this
at all manager comes out to fight on his behalf looking like super Dave Osborne but just more
docile and less alive and this turns and says wow okay see ya sorry bud it's not a hit by pitch
the at-bat continues foul ball ball they say he didn't go then puts one in play caught all right
but he did get hit there in the next at-bat against the same pitcher
Estes who has now hit him twice and he's been hit four times hits him right in the shoulder he did
swing at it and then he throws the bat what the fuck man what the fuck are you doing why you keep
hitting me what is your problem just keeps hitting him up and in that must be the scouting report and
then they can't control it also real weird how he swings at all the pitches that hit him it's like a
it's like he's trying to get out of the way but doing such a bad job everyone's
from the bullpens they run out they're just late to the party like really late was the bullpen door
locked he gets escorted to the dugout they don't want him causing a scene you know they want to
get in trouble he's like I kind of want to cause a scene I'm still really mad about I'm gonna take
out these sunflower seeds bam throws them all in the field look at the kids sharing the popcorn
with his brother in the top that's nice of him brother's like I'm trying to see the show I don't
want popcorn right now but I appreciate it sunflower bag bags of sunflower seeds I guess
it's nice they're in bags let's clean up
imagine if it was just like a gallon of just like empty seeds is that that's not a thing that's
never been a thing they're like please leave he's like okay okay I'll leave I just need to grab all
my equipment first because I want my stuff you know I don't want these minor leaguers stealing
all my stuff he did swing but it's very weird like I don't think it's an attempt to bat the ball
because his hand is off the bat and he's just trying to get out of the way but he's getting
more in the way the crowd doesn't seem that into it he doesn't seem that into it he wrote a big
apology saying bam just throw the helmet you know that's where you gotta that's where you gotta
teach the kids you just throw the helmet at the ground get your frustration out get that out don't
throw your bat at the pitcher but he is throwing a ball at you so I get it it seems fair when you
think about it that way getting hit five times in a rehab assignment that's not fun he also wrote
an apology out he said his mother recently passed away he apologized he says not an excuse but
that's just where I was at and also they just keep hitting me and I don't like that now I'm
paraphrasing and kind of putting my own spin onto his apology he is a Paul he is apologetic he's
probably gonna get suspended that's gonna push back his return to the major league action and
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