Pittsburgh Pirates reliever Dennis Santana has addressed his altercation with a heckling fan during Thursday night’s game against the Detroit Tigers at Comerica Park.
Wednesday’s game, the second of the three-game set, was postponed due to rain. The two clubs completed the series with a doubleheader on Thursday, splitting the last two games of the series.
Fan cameras caught Dennis Santana warming up in the Pirates’ bullpen before he had a heated altercation with a heckler. In the video below, Santana can be seen jumping up and taking a swing at the fan before coaches intervene and escort him away:
Dennis Santana is swinging at fans from the bullpen pic.twitter.com/cah20Ohtis
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Santana addressed the incident in his post-game media scrum, per Noah Hiles of the Pittsburgh-Post Gazette.
“You guys know me,” Santana said through an interpreter. “I’m a calm demeanor type of person. I’ve never had any issues for any of the teams that I’ve played for. I guess the guy crossed the line a few times.”
Dennis Santana didn’t disclose what the heckler told him during the altercation.
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Santana came out to pitch in the bottom half of the ninth inning, retiring the one batter he faced before the game was delayed due to rain. The Pirates put up four runs in the top half of the 10th en route to an 8-4 victory to avoid the sweep.
The veteran reliever is having a career year in 2025, posting an impressive 1.72 ERA through his first 32 games.
Dennis Santana & Pirates Begin Three-Game Home Series vs. Texas Rangers On Friday
After snapping a four-game losing streak on Thursday night, Santana and the Pirates head home to begin a three-game home set against the Texas Rangers.
The Rangers, two years removed from their first World Series championship, are off to a disappointing start with a 36-39 record. The Pirates are well out of the playoff race, but this is a good opportunity for them to stack up a few W’s before they hit the road again next week.
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