Reds' Amir Garrett Deactivated Twitter After Users Wished Death on Wife, Unborn Child

AP Photo/Paul Vernon

Cincinnati Reds pitcher Amir Garrett returned to Twitter on Wednesday with a message explaining why he deactivated his account in the first place.

He said he didn't deactivate it because he couldn't handle criticism for his performance on the field but rather because he "would read awful things" such as "people wishing death upon my unborn child along with my pregnant wife. Unimaginable dm's spewing hate and stomach wrenching messages."

Garrett announced the birth of his daughter, Koa Mae Garrett, in July.

On the field, the southpaw had the worst statistical year of his career since he was a rookie in 2017. He posted a 6.04 ERA, 1.57 WHIP and 61 strikeouts in 47.2 innings during the 2021 season, which was a far cry from his 2.45 ERA and 0.93 WHIP in the shortened 2020 campaign.

It is not a stretch to suggest Reds fans reacted poorly to his on-field struggles and sent some of the hateful messages that caused him to deactivate his account.

Garrett is also someone who has not hesitated to mix it up with division rivals in the past.

There was the back-and-forth with then-Chicago Cubs shortstop Javy Baez that included a benches-clearing incident that resulted in Garrett being suspended and a taunting incident that led to a fine for Baez. The relief pitcher also famously charged the Pittsburgh Pirates dugout and fought seemingly the entire team in 2019.

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Perhaps Cubs and Pirates fans were also among those responsible for the vitriol.

For his part, Garrett wished the "keyboard tough guys" well and suggested everyone should "protect your peace."