Harold Reynolds never faced Pedro Martinez during his MLB career, so his first ever at-bat against the Hall of Famer came Monday night in an MLB Network studio.
And, well, let’s just say he singled up the middle.
Ouch. That might leave a mark.
Thankfully for Pedro, he and Harold weren’t using an actual baseball but rather a ball of tape that Pedro said resembled ones he used as a kid in the Dominican Republic. In fact, it was Reynolds who wound up rolling on the ground Monday night, howling with laughter as Pedro walked off his injury. Fellow analysts Bill Ripken and Sean Casey were unharmed.
The most surprising aspect of the incident Monday night might have been that Reynolds (a career .258 hitter with 21 home runs over 12 seasons) was able to make such solid contact off Pedro. Next time, Martinez might want to try a changeup.
MLB Tonight, like ESPN’s Baseball Tonight before it, likes to stage in-studio demonstrations, usually regarding base-running or swing mechanics or something else that doesn’t necessarily require a ball. Because when you introduce a ball around professional athletes (in an expensive studio), things get dangerous.
About Alex Putterman
Alex is a writer and editor for The Comeback and Awful Announcing. He has written for The Atlantic, VICE Sports, MLB.com, SI.com and more. He is a proud alum of Northwestern University and The Daily Northwestern. You can find him on Twitter @AlexPutterman.