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Red Sox player somehow broke his bat on a check swing

Originally posted on Larry Brown Sports
By Matt Wadleigh | Last updated Feb 24, 2026 6:29 PM ET

The Boston Red Sox fell to the Pittsburgh Pirates 16-7 on Tuesday in their latest spring training game.

However, the game made for aviral moment. In the bottom of the fourth inning, Red Sox outfielder Wilyer Abreu tried to check his swing, and in a bizarre sequence, the bat broke with the barrel flying just a few feet in front of home plate.

The announcers were also stunned, and Abreu also stood at the plate in disbelief after seeing what had taken place.

Wilyer Abreu is so strong he broke this bat at the handle pulling back on a check swing pic.twitter.com/JeQcsVdXkf
— NESN (@NESN) February 24, 2026

The third base umpire said Abreu went around and called it a strike, and Abreu proceeded to ground out after getting another bat.

While fans couldn’t believe what had happened with the bat, others were in disbelief that the call was a strike on the appeal to the third base umpire.

I think we should really be talking about why this was ruled a swing https://t.co/xXEc2VK8ax
— Isaiah Campbell Enjoyer (ICE) 3-1 ☀️ (@cnm_playz) February 24, 2026

For future reference he didn’t go at all there lol https://t.co/xp36AvX3jF
— John Hunter (@JohnnyFBaseball) February 24, 2026

that’s not a swing lol https://t.co/H0KU8a5m9T
— rell (@rellgottsnackss) February 24, 2026

Abreu is entering his fourth season with the Red Sox, and he played in 115 games in 2025 with 22 home runs and 69 RBIs.

Abreu finished the game with one hit in three at-bats, although this clip and this moment will be something he likely remembers for the rest of his life.

This article first appeared on Larry Brown Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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