Phillies reliever Orion Kerkering had plenty of support from his teammates and manager after his brutal error led to a crushing defeat at the hands of the Dodgers. Catcher J.T. Realmuto was the first to get to Kerkering as he stood on the field with his head down and hands on his knees in front of the celebrating Dodgers. Realmuto was quickly joined by right fielder Nick Castellanos, and then, as Kerkering headed for the dugout, he was met by Phillies manager Rob Thomson, who consoled the young reliever after the crushing moment.
But Kerkering also received support from what may have seemed like an unlikely source: the winning manager. Dodgers manager Dave Roberts spoke to reporters on Thursday and empathized with Kerkering, who had clearly been emotional before he took questions from the media.
Dave Roberts speaks with the media following the #Dodgers advancing to the #NLCS, defeating the Phillies 2-1 in Game 4. pic.twitter.com/k7i4XBu7Gb
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"It's brutal," Roberts said after the game. "Obviously they played great defense tonight. It's one of those things that—It's a PFP, a pitcher's fielding practice and he's done it a thousand times. Just right there I'm sure he was so focused on just getting the hitter and just sort of forgot the outs and the situation. Kerkering is a stud and you definitely feel for a player.
"I'm obviously happy that we won but it's just, yeah—He's had a heck of a year and he's a heck of a pitcher."
Sports can be cruel and unforgiving at times, and while it shouldn't be the case, it's sometimes forgotten that these are human beings, who can be prone to mistakes, playing a game.
Kudos to Roberts for not forgetting the human element.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Dave Roberts Empathizes With Phillies' Orion Kerkering After Error in Crushing Loss.
