Astros' Lance McCullers Jr. Hires Security for Family After Receiving Death Threats

Houston Astros pitcher Lance McCullers Jr. has hired security in the wake of receiving online death threats aimed at his family.

McCullers told the Associated Press he hired a security team to look after his family 24/7 amid a recent rise in online abuse directed at MLB players.

The situation became public on May 10 when McCullers and Astros manager Joe Espada addressed threats the right-hander was receiving in the wake of his rough outing against the Cincinnati Reds.

"I understand people are very passionate and people love the Astros and love sports, but threatening to find my kids and murder them is a little bit tough to deal with," the 31-year-old said after the game.

Espada called the situation "unfortunate" and offered his support for McCullers.

"We're going to continue to help him, and we expect him to improve," he said. "And he's going to continue to get an opportunity."

McCullers told the AP he had to have a conversation with his five-year-old daughter about the threats after she overheard him and his wife talking about it on the phone.

"She asked me when I came home: 'Daddy, like, what is threats? Who wants to hurt us? Who wants to hurt me?'" McCullers said. "So those conversations are tough to deal with."

There have been several MLB players recently who have addressed the increased rise in online threats.

Boston Red Sox reliever Liam Hendriks wrote in an Instagram post that "threats against my life and my wife's life are horrible and cruel."

There was also an incident involving Red Sox outfielder Jarren Duran, who has spoken about his battles with depression, in which he exchanged words with a fan in Cleveland who he said made a comment about his suicide attempt that was referenced in the Netflix documentary The Clubhouse.

McCullers returned to the mound in big league games on May 4 for the first time since November 2022. He missed each of the next two years due to a flexor tendon injury that required surgery in June 2023.