Trevor Bauer’s worst outing of the season for the Cleveland Indians brought out the worst of social media.
Following Monday night’s home game against the Chicago White Sox, a 9-1 loss, Bauer commented on the offensive messages he received on Instagram, which included death threats, slurs and other ill wishes.
He shared screenshots of several of them on his Twitter account.
From one Instagram user: “Could you please kill yourself?”
And from another: “I really hope you and your family die in a car crash. And it’s actually gonna happen.”
From his Twitter account, Bauer called out Instagram for not having a way to report the messages he had received. And he shared a simple message for his followers.
“Stop online harassment, bullying, and hate speech.”
On Monday night at Progressive Field, Bauer surrendered eight runs — seven earned — in five-plus innings, and saw his ERA rise by nearly a full run per game from 2.45 to 3.42.