“Awful take, still time to delete this tweet” - Fans defend George Springer after MLB insider’s shocking take on Game 5 incident

Veteran Toronto Blue Jays slugger George Springer had a painful outing on Friday as he was hit by a pitch from Seattle Mariners pitcher Brian Woo in Game 5 of the American League Division Series.

Springer, who has been one of the offensive leaders for the team in the postseason, was struck by Woo's pitch on the knee and was helped off the pitch by trainers. The incident went viral as Mariners fans at T-Mobile Park cheered after Springer was hit.

MLB insider Aaron Levine caused a stir with his post on X, referencing Springer's part in his former team, the Houston Astros' 2017 infamous cheating scandal.

"Well, if you're going to hit ANYONE with a fastball," Levine wrote on X.

However, MLB fans defended Springer after Levine's controversial take.

"Awful take, still time to delete this tweet."

"What a disgrace you are."

"You’re just as bad as the losers in the stands booing him while he was on the ground. Pathetic."

"Disgusting. I'd never cheer ANY player getting hurt, no matter who they play for. Do better."

"Wow Aaron using your professional work social media to promote violence or injury of a person even in professional baseball. Hopefully, someone in senior management at Fox makes you issue an official Fox apology to George Springer."

While the injury forced Springer out of the game, Blue Jays manager John Schneider confirmed that the X-Rays came back negative and is expected to play a part in Blue Jays' ALCS Game 6 clash.

MLB insider defends himself after controversial George Springer take

Amid backlash from fans, Aaron Levine seemingly tried to defend himself, saying he doesn't wish injury on any player.

"Anyone that knows me should also realize that I never wish a bad injury on anyone," Levine wrote. "If it had been at his head, I never would have said it. I hope he's able to come back. But that doesn't take away the knee-jerk thought, and I said it out loud. I'm not the only one who had it."

About the author

Chaitanya Prakash is an editor who covers US Sports at Sportskeeda. His first brush with sportswriting was in 2012 when the greatest football manager of all time, Sir Alex Ferguson, bid farewell to the beautiful game.

Although having started out professionally as a cricket writer in 2022, Chaitanya's curiosity and indiscriminate interest in all sports in general eventually introduced him to America's favorite pastime.

While Chaitanya's favorite player from the current crop is the dynamic Venezuelan Ronald Acuna Jr., his all-time favorite, however, is Pedro Martinez, for his self-belief and consistency. He also rates Jose Bautista's iconic bat flip in 2015 as his favorite moment in baseball history.

Chaitanya specializes in reporting on technical aspects of the game or analyzing patterns behind specific plays. He also likes pondering over players' self-assessments following the conclusion of a game as it helps him get an idea of how they think about the sport in general.

When not cheering for his favorites across sports, Chaitanya likes being transported to the past through a good war documentary or a historical documentary in general.

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Edited by Chaitanya Prakash