Atlanta Braves reliever Connor Thomas had about as bad a day at the office as possible on Monday night against the New York Mets. In fact, it was so bad that MLB legend Keith Hernandez could barely watch what was taking place at Citi Field.
Hernandez, who has been a commentator on Mets broadcasts for nearly 30 years, was in a unique spot in the booth on Monday.
Witnessing the mightily struggling team pound Atlanta 14-3 had to have been a nice change of pace for Hernandez given the team’s many inconsistencies this season, but he didn’t exactly love how the team eventually got to its dominating victory.
“I’m sorry, I just think that’s criminal what we just witnessed,” Hernandez said during the bottom of the eighth inning.
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“Poor kid, you just want to give him a hug,” Hernandez continued while the broadcast panned to Thomas in the Braves dugout. “Literally, I’m sick to my stomach. I’m not a happy camper.”
“Criminal” may be too harsh a word to describe Thomas’ outing against New York, but Hernandez feeling bad for the relief pitcher is certainly understandable.
Thomas entered the contest with things knotted up at 3-3 before giving up 10 hits, 11 earned runs, three home runs, and walking five batters in just 2.2 innings of work.
It was very much a situation that we see quite often in today’s game where relievers have to stay in contests far longer than they should to preserve other arms in the bullpen.
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Thomas, who retired just eight of the 23 batters he faced, was eventually replaced by a position player on the bump.
Monday night’s rough go marked Thomas’ second appearance on the mound for Atlanta this season. The 28-year-old came on in relief against the Pittsburgh Pirates on July 7 and allowed four runs, including one long ball, in 3.2 innings of action.
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