Rick Porcello silences ESPN, and the DH rule, with a swing of the bat

The ESPN broadcast crew was in the middle of trolling Rick Porcello’s at-bat, and the DH rule as a whole, when the Boston Red Sox pitcher cleared the bases.

With the Fourth of July coming up, you had to figure that the Washington Nationals would be wrapped up in a compelling series. And they are, with the Boston Red Sox coming to town. Their first game, with Rick Porcello and Max Scherzer on the mound, figured to be a pitching duel, and it was. It was 3-0 Red Sox early on, but those runs came from the unlikeliest of sources.

The DH rule has been a point of contention for several years in the league, and it heats up whenever there’s an interleague showdown. The ESPN broadcast crew was in the middle of talking about it when Porcello stepped up to the plate. It started out like any ordinary pitchers’ at-bat, as he swung and missed on the first two pitches. They were even laughing at him!

But once the count reached 0-2, Porcello ripped a double all the way to the warning track and scored three runs. Even though he’s a pitcher, he couldn’t pass up the chance to clear the bases!

https://twitter.com/oldtakesexposed/status/1013935542654918657?s=21

The funniest part about this clip is Adnan even joked that Porcello’s about to go yard. He didn’t take it that far, but it only would’ve made a run’s difference.

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We’ve seen pitchers hit dingers before, and it usually makes for great fodder. But Porcello’s hit was noteworthy not only because ESPN was openly mocking him during his at-bat, but also because he got a hit off of arguably the best starting pitcher in the game. And through the early portion of the game, he was his team’s only source of offense.

While the Nationals haven’t lived up to their promise yet this season, the Red Sox have been neck-and-neck with the New York Yankees all season. The race to see who finishes first in the AL East will be a fun one up until October.