Saturday was a day Lance McCullers Jr. has been looking forward to for quite some time. He was set to take the mound at Daikin Park, home of the Houston Astros, for the first time since September of the 2022 season. Unfortunately, it did not go well at all, and some "fans" took things way too far, based on what manager Joe Espada revealed to the media.
A heated Joe Espada began his postgame news conference by revealing that threats against Lance McCullers Jr’s family and life were made after today’s start. The Astros say they’ve notified HPD and MLB security about the threats.
— Chandler Rome (@Chandler_Rome) May 11, 2025
Booing a player you root for is one thing. Making threats against McCullers and his family is another, and crossed a major line. The Astros, understandably, have contacted HPD and MLB security to discuss the threats.
Lance McCullers Jr: "I understand people are very passionate and people love the Astros and love sports, but threatening to find my kids and murder them is a little bit tough to deal with."
— Chandler Rome (@Chandler_Rome) May 11, 2025
McCullers, understandably, was not thrilled with the situation at hand.
For more news and rumors, check out MLB Insider Robert Murray’s work on The Baseball Insiders podcast, subscribe toThe Moonshot, our weekly MLB newsletter and join the discord during the MLB season.
Lance McCullers Jr. receives threats aimed at him and his family after frustrating outing
Obviously, McCullers had an outing to forget. Seven of the eight batters he faced reached base, and all seven of those runners scored. He gave up three hits including a home run, issued three walks, and hit a batter as well. Even the out he recorded was thanks in large part to a tremendous diving stop from Jose Altuve at second base.
By the time McCullers left the game, the Astros were down 5-0. Logan VanWey allowed both of the runners McCullers left on base to score after his departure, and even allowed three more to cross the plate for good measure. It was 10-0 before the Astros even went up to bat, and McCullers was a big reason why.
With that being said, though, what kind of behavior is this? McCullers had a rough day, but does that really give anyone an excuse to make threats toward an athlete or his family? The answer to that is unequivocally no. Booing a player on a team you root for isn't something I think makes any sense, but at least that's keeping things somewhat civil. Threatening a player and his kids is nothing but insane.
What makes this matter worse is that, again, this was McCullers' first start in Houston in years. It was just his second MLB start since 2022. He has been battling through injuries for years, finally got back to the Diakin Park mound, and this is how it went? You'd think Astros fans would cut him a bit of slack given the amount of time he's missed.
Overall, this is just a ridiculous situation. Those "fans" don't belong anywhere near MLB games or sports games in general. Hopefully, proper action is taken.