Tommy Pham Takes To Social Media To Explain Outburst

In the seventh inning of the Pittsburgh Pirates’ 5-2 victory over the Toronto Blue Jays, the benches cleared after Tommy Pham drew a four-pitch walk.

After ball four, Pham flipped his bat and turned to catcher Tyler Heineman, causing the benches to clear. No punches were thrown, but the two teams exchanged words at home plate. No ejections were made.

A four-pitch walk typically isn’t the time for a brawl, especially when none of the pitches were inside or near the head. The Pirates’ veteran is no stranger to controversy, though. After the game, he took to social media and explained what riled him up.

“[Expletive] about a ball not being called a strike to the umpire when it’s clearly below the zone and away is disrespectful not only to the umpire but the hitter as well so like I said when I flipped the bat [Expletive] him @KeeganMatheson dude has two years in the show I know the zone,” Pham posted on X in response to Blue Jays reporter Keegan Matheson.

Blue Jays manager John Schneider wasn’t fazed by the incident.

“I’m not worried about Tommy Pham’s opinion on anything, really,” Schneider said.

While some were expecting some sort of retaliation against Pham, the outfielder isn’t in the starting lineup on Tuesday. It’s not all bad blood between Pham and the Blue Jays, though. Pham also posted that the Blue Jays were interested in the Pirates’ outfielder at the deadline, but a move was never made.

If he isn’t used as a substitute on Tuesday, he’ll have another chance to face Toronto in the series finale on Wednesday.

More Pirates: MLB Pipeline: Pirates Have Top Prospect At Multiple Positions