Baseball broadcasts sometimes cut away from fans behaving badly, but the responsibility for what viewers see, even when fans make lewd gestures, lies with the broadcast itself.
During a matchup between the Cincinnati Reds and Atlanta Braves on Thursday night, the Braves’ local broadcast on the Foundation El Sports Network showcased a segment featuring the De La Cruz brothers, Ellie and Pedro. However, an oversight was made when Pedro was seen giving the middle finger to the camera in one of the photos shared.
The intent of showing the brothers was to highlight the stark height difference—Ellie stands at 6-foot-5, while Pedro is only 5-foot-8—which resulted in a humorous dynamic. This broadcast wasn’t just limited to local viewers; it was also aired on the MLB network, bringing even more attention to the mistake.
Following the incident, MLB’s official X account shared a segment but later edited out the moment when Pedro displayed his finger. This blunder certainly captured attention but was overshadowed by a more heartfelt segment showing Pedro running a car wash in the Dominican Republic while Ellie shines as a rising star for the Reds.
The commentators remarked, “De La Cruz tells the story of how Pedro was always the bigger and stronger twin as kids. But around age 12, things changed rapidly; Ellie grew to 6-6 while Pedro stayed just over 5-8.” Though their professional paths diverged, the broadcast emphasized their close bond.
As for the game itself, the Reds fell narrowly to the Braves, 5-4, in what turned out to be a thrilling match. Cincinnati tied things up with a two-run homer from Rece Hinds in the ninth. Despite Atlanta’s resilience, the Braves managed to clinch victory in the bottom of the 11th.
In the game, De La Cruz had a solid performance, going 4-for-4 with three strikeouts, giving him a current batting average of .258, along with five home runs and 25 RBIs.
