The 2025 MLB regular season should have been a joyous moment for Houston Astros starting pitcher Lance McCullers Jr.
On May 4, against the Chicago White Sox, he took a Major League mound for the first time since the 2022 World Series against the Philadelphia Phillies.
McCullers has battled several injuries and setbacks over the last 2.5 years, but he never gave up on his goal to return to the Astros.
He accomplished that feat, but things soured quickly after.
In his second start against the Cincinnati Reds, he recorded only one out, getting hit incredibly hard.
The Reds scored seven runs against him, as he surrendered three hits, three walks and hit one batter.
After the game, McCullers revealed that he and his family had received death threats online, which his daughter overheard his wife talking about, leading to a tough discussion that had to be had with his five-year-old.
“She asked me when I came home: ‘Daddy, like, what is threats? Who wants to hurt us? Who wants to hurt me?'” McCullers told The Associated Press on Wednesday, via ESPN. “So those conversations are tough to deal with.”
Looking to ensure the safety of his family — McCullers has a wife and two young daughters — he hired 24-hour security to ensure that nothing happens to them.
Sadly, he isn’t the only Major League player to share that online threats have been sent their way.
Liam Hendriks of the Boston Red Sox also revealed that he and his family received death threats, with horrible comments being made towards his family after a loss to the New York Mets earlier this season.
Both the Astros and Red Sox are working with MLB security to find where the threats were coming from and take necessary action.
Some players, such as Riley Greene of the Detroit Tigers, have abandoned social media altogether because of how bad the abuse has gotten on the platforms.
Fans are free to express opinions and show passion for their favorite teams and players, but death threats clearly cross the line beyond playful banter and some friendly back-and-forth barbs over the internet.
McCullers has successfully bounced back after the scary incident, though, but it’s one that he never should have had to deal with in the first place.
