White Sox's Liam Hendriks swears up storm on hot mic during All-Star Game appearance
FOX mic’d up players such as Freddie Freeman, Fernando Tatis Jr. and Nelson Cruz during Tuesday’s MLB All-Star Game broadcast to give viewers the unique experience of hearing from baseball’s biggest stars in real time.
Liam Hendriks, the White Sox’s and American League All-Star team’s closer, didn’t know his mic was still working in the ninth inning of the Midsummer Classic. And what happens when a closer trying to deliver his team the win doesn’t know the world is listening to him? Well, let’s just say younger viewers might have picked up a few new words.
(Note: The video below contains strong language.)
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Hendriks could also be heard on the mic telling catcher Mike Zunino during the inning that his mic wasn’t working and that he hadn’t heard anything from it all night, something he later confirmed to The Athletic’s Jayson Stark.
Liam Hendriks said he didn’t know his mic was live in the 9th since he couldn’t hear the booth, but word soon reached him.
“I’m sure that made for some interesting TV,” he said. “I hope the bleep-er guy was on point.”
— Jayson Stark (@jaysonst) July 14, 2021
Yeah, the “bleep-er guy” was not on point. The outbursts came through loud and clear as he worked a scoreless ninth inning with a strikeout and two hits allowed to nail down the American League’s 5-2 win against the National League.
Hendriks had previously expressed apprehension about being mic’d up during a game, telling CBS Sports’ Matt Snyder that it would be a “bad idea.”
I found the recording and I’m re-listening to it. He suggested for himself it should be a three-second delay to beep out the cussing
— Matt Snyder (@MattSnyderCBS) July 14, 2021
Hendriks enjoyed learning that he was being heard the entire time, as he told the Chicago Tribune’s LaMond Pope.
Liam Hendriks on his ninth: “The fact I was able to throw the ninth and have a relatively eventful ninth, kind of plays into my personality a little bit. And not realizing the mic was hot and I couldn’t hear them and they could hear me was a lot of fun.”
— LaMond Pope (@lamondpope) July 14, 2021
Twitter also enjoyed getting to hear the AL saves leader be himself out there on the mound.
Whoever gave Liam Hendriks the mike while pitching, do Rich Hill next.
— Eno Sarris (@enosarris) July 14, 2021
Thank you so much to whoever thought it was a good idea to mix up Liam Hendriks. I needed this.
— Cody Decker (@Decker6) July 14, 2021
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