Whether he’s calling football, baseball or pro wrestling, this much has become clear: Pat McAfee reads the comments.
And that was the case on Monday night after the ESPN star provided the introductions for the 2025 MLB Home Run Derby.
Unsurprisingly, the fan reaction wasn’t particularly kind. A clip of McAfee’s intros posted to the Awful Announcing X feed elicited plenty of negative feedback, while a poll regarding the ESPN broadcast — which didn’t even mention him — also resulted in criticism directed toward the former All-Pro punter.
That was painful. IDK if ESPN or MLB came up with this idea, but it sucked. There is way too much Pat McAfee yelling in our faces.
— Patrick (@panderson1988) July 15, 2025
Anything not involving Pat McAfee.
— Randy Clemens™ MJM Strategies Radio 🎼 (@bostonrandy) July 15, 2025
Such sentiments weren’t just limited to our social media mentions. And on Tuesday morning, McAfee took to X to respond to the feedback, while simultaneously posting a screenshot of some of the commentary regarding his involvement in the event.
“Fresh off a break.. got a chance to do something new with a different sport.. I really enjoyed it and think it went exactly how all parties envisioned it.. let’s see what X has to say…,” McAfee wrote, while sharing comments such as “ESPN needs to enable a feature that allows people to unsubscribe from Pat McAfee in all formats” and “Does ESPN know that Pat McAfee is bad at his job and subsequently annoys the f*ck out of anyone who isn’t 17 years old?”
Good morning beautiful people
Fresh off a break.. got a chance to do something new with a different sport.. I really enjoyed it and think it went exactly how all parties envisioned it.. let’s see what X has to say… pic.twitter.com/0QcP9j19Pt
— Pat McAfee (@PatMcAfeeShow) July 15, 2025
McAfee’s reaction wasn’t dissimilar to the social media post he authored last month regarding his recent absence from WWE Raw. After his comments explaining his hiatus were aggregated by several pro wrestling news sites, the College GameDay star posted several screenshots of the negative feedback those stories led to. Curiously, McAfee has yet to return to WWE after last appearing at the Money In The Bank event on June 7.
While Pat McAfee certainly has every right to defend himself — or in this instance, be somewhat self-deprecating — it’s surprising to see someone who has obtained so much success still remain so online. Ultimately, McAfee isn’t for everyone; in fact, one could argue that’s a part of his appeal. And although there were certainly plenty of negative responses to his presence at the Home Run Derby, he could have just as easily focused on those who praised his performance.
From a bigger picture perspective, McAfee’s pro wrestling-like intros were merely a small part of an ESPN broadcast that was largely panned by its viewers. And it also came amid a strange day in which the West Virginia product seemed to be one of the only ESPN personalities promoting that the Worldwide Leader would be airing the Home Run Derby — something that clearly didn’t buy him much goodwill with the fans who ultimately tuned in.
About Ben Axelrod
Ben Axelrod is a veteran of the sports media landscape, having most recently worked for NBC's Cleveland affiliate, WKYC. Prior to his time in Cleveland, he covered Ohio State football and the Big Ten for outlets including Cox Media Group, Bleacher Report, Scout and Rivals.