It was a glimpse behind the scenes, something the sneaky Houston Astros generally wouldn't want to reveal, but Alex Bregman himself posted the photo on Instagram.
The All-Star was sitting on a sofa in a home next to a young girl, young boy and, presumably, a mother. Bregman was in his full Astros uniform, as if he had walked out of the dugout, past the video room, out of the stadium and right into this house. But in this living room, there were multiple, huge studio lights and a bunch of technology, as well as a few workers.
His caption read: "On Set."
It was an innocuous photo. Ballplayer prepares for local commercial. And the comments were heated. Many incendiary. Some, to get that very point across, were complemented by the "fire" emoji.
"Seems like u already know your way around the cameras," wrote Instagram user zobbz _ 42.
"Can't wait until you get beaned in the face!" wrote jgmckenna16.
"Great example for those kids," said adamxjue.
As of Monday night, there were 1,828 comments on the photo. One comment alone had 169 replies. It was from onlybuilt4rap, who wrote: "Your team and players weren't punished enough, therefore we true MLB fans who care about the integrity of the game will continue to drag you guys through the mud for the foreseeable future."
A trip through the comments of this one photo provides a microcosm of how so many of us feel _ from the sports columnist to the young fan, from the die-hard to the casual observer, from adamxjue to zobbz _ 42.
"Give back the ring." _ abqfire72
"The trash can is in the kitchen, don't forget!" _ Thometz12
"Great, now mics?" _ j _ e _ r _ e _ m _ y12.0.6
The Houston Astros, who Major League Baseball said stole signs with technology during their title year in 2017, and also during 2018, are egregious cheaters and brazen disgraces to our game. What's worse, through some of the quotes this spring, some of them don't seem to fully get how badly they messed up, or how we're not going to simply "move on" just because they have.
What the asterisk-deserving Astros did negatively affected so many people, notably the fans of the Los Angeles Dodgers, whose team very well could've won the 2017 World Series if it was played by two honest teams instead of one.
You also think of all the Houston fans who were misled by the Astros missile-launched homers at home _ the faithful who now have to compartmentalize emotions and modify memories. You think of the ballplayers who lost but could've won, the pitchers whose careers were curtailed by bad performances in Houston.
And you think of the parents who have to explain to their kids that their heroes cheated.
But, as seen in the Instagram comments, there were plenty of fans who took time to show support for Bregman. Plus that the photo itself had 69,708 likes (Bregman's account has 709,000 followers).
"Love you bro stay strong yall got this." _ Evan _ groneman
"Keep your head up Bregs! You have a long and exciting career ahead of you." _ Jlawintexas
"2020 World Series MVP." _ Perezarmando6 _
"Love you man, keep your head up from all the hate," _ tyb _ zay.12 (and in response, the Instagram user named (bleep)alexbregman said: "That's cute.")
"Hey, haters, why don't you unfollow instead of perpetuating the hate?" _ Elizabeth.thacker
The last comment was quite sensible. If you're that mad at Alex Bregman, why follow him on Instagram and subject yourself to photos of a happy Alex Bregman? Indirectly, Elizabeth.thacker also was talking to this columnist, who used to really like Bregman, and now is forever frustrated by what went down ... yet still follows the ballplayer on Instagram.
It's as if there's this weird joy taken in seeing the comments on his photos. Or, maybe you don't want to unfollow and miss something he posts that's newsworthy or notable. And for those who actually comment, it's their chance to express their feelings literally to the player who ignited the emotions. Like, there's a chance Alex Bregman himself might read it.
Bregman, after all, fancied himself as the epitome of the social media sports star. As he rose to stardom as a slugger, he grew his following on social media by showcasing his personality, opinions and personal pictures. He wanted eyeballs. And he's still got them, but they're glaring at him.
"You guy got off Scott free. No remorse what so ever. You all look smug and cocky more than ever." _ M _ conner80
"Lost a lotta respect for u breg." _ Joshmontero
"Astros players keep making posts like these to deflect from their cheating..." _ _ will.taylor
The other thing this Instagram post and its comments represent is the instantaneous nature of the modern game. Everything happens so fast, and everything happens on a screen and everything has a mechanism for commentary. If something happens, social media allows a fan (or media) to respond and opine or argue or compare. It's a forum. It's a release. It's sometimes a cesspool. It's where we wade. We being everyone, from Bregman fans to Bregman haters to Bregman himself.
In some ways, the Instagram comment is the new boo.
