Boston Red Sox reliever Liam Hendriks posted on Instagram that he’s received death threats, becoming the latest MLB player to talk publicly about threats from fans this season.
On Thursday morning, Hendriks posted to his Instagram story: ‘Threats against my life and my wife’s life are horrible and cruel. You need help. Leaving comments telling me to commit suicide and how you wish I died from cancer is disgusting and vile.’”
Hendriks’ post comes less than two weeks after Houston Astros starter Lance McCullers Jr. received death threats. In late April, the Cleveland Guardians apologized to Red Sox outfielder Jarren Duran after a fan confronted him during a game who “violated (the Guardians’) fan conduct policy.” Red Sox starter Lucas Giolito recently spoke with the Baseball Isn’t Boring podcast about receiving death threats. In 2019, Hendriks was one of dozens of players across multiple sports who filed a lawsuit against a bookkeeper who’d sent them threatening messages related to the bookkeeper’s failed bets.
On Wednesday, Hendriks expressed frustration with his usage out of the Red Sox bullpen and later was charged with the loss in Boston’s 5-1 defeat to the New York Mets. After the game, Hendriks noted he’d spoken to manager Alex Cora and chief baseball officer Craig Breslow about how he was being utilized.
“There were a couple games where it was like I was the last guy in the bullpen and it’s a new experience for me,” he said. “I feel like I’d been pitching well enough to get trusted in a couple of those situations, and it didn’t come to fruition. We had a couple chats and I got in there today and it didn’t quite work out.
“At the end of the day, regardless of any situation, I got to go out there and get the job done when I do pitch, and today I didn’t.”
Hendriks has appeared in 11 games since returning to the mound this season after missing much of the past two seasons while recovering from non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma followed by Tommy John surgery. He received the Jimmy V award for perseverance at the 2023 ESPY awards.
(Photo: Ken Blaze / Imagn Images)
