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Friday’s Hot Clicks: 30-Year-Old Rookie Strikes Out His Brother in MLB Debut

Brian Moran made MLB history against his younger brother Colin. 

Dan Gartland

Justin K. Aller/Getty Images | Justin Berl/Getty Images

Just like wiffle ball in the back yard

Marlins rookie Brian Moran took a long, strange trip to the major leagues. He was drafted in 2009 in the seventh round by the Mariners and bounced from team to team—the Blue Jays, the Angels, the Indians, the Bridgeport Bluefish, the Braves, the Orioles, back to the Bluefish, the Dodgers and the Rockies—before signing with the Marlins after the end of last season. 

Ten years and one Tommy John surgery later, Miami promoted him to the big leagues on Tuesday in an incredibly emotional moment for the 30-year-old. He had family in the stands in Pittsburgh last night to watch his debut—and, as it turns out, in the opposite dugout. Moran’s younger brother, Colin, plays third base for the Pirates. 

Brian entered the game in the fourth and it just so happened the man due up second in the inning was Colin. It was the first time two brothers faced off in a batter-pitchup matchup during an MLB debut. Colin worked a good at-bat but Brian came out on top, catching his younger brother looking at a slider at the knees for strike three. The older Moran said it was “pretty special.”

“I was a little more nervous than I thought I’d be when I saw him step in the box,” Brian said after the game. “I fell behind in the count, and then once I got to 3-2, I felt like if I could drop a slider in, I felt I could get him. It was also risky, because if I missed with it, I would have looked like I didn’t want any part of him. It was a high-risk, high-reward situation.”

Colin may have had the better MLB career—this is his fourth season in the bigs, and his second as Pittsburgh’s starting third baseman—but he gives the credit to his older brother. 

“Anything he did, I was going to do,” Colin told MLB.com. “I wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t for the example that he set, so it’s pretty cool.”

This play will definitely not be topped

The best play on the gridiron last night came in D-II action between Minnesota-Duluth and Minot State, and it wasn’t even close. While the Bears-Packers game was a total dud, this play from the Bulldogs-Beavers game is a strong possibility to be the most exciting college football play of the season. 

That’s Minot State freshman Cory Carignan housing the most improbable kick return of the year. He looks like peak Reggie Bush, but I think the Minnesota-Duluth coach will have his special teams unit doing tackling drills until midnight. 

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Email dan.gartland@simail.com with any feedback or follow me on Twitter for approximately one half-decent baseball joke per week. Bookmark this page to see previous editions of Hot Clicks and find the newest edition every day. By popular request I’ve made a Spotify playlist of the music featured here. Visit our Extra Mustard page throughout each day for more offbeat sports stories.

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Dan Gartland
DAN GARTLAND

Dan Gartland is the writer and editor of Sports Illustrated’s flagship daily newsletter, SI:AM, covering everything an educated sports fan needs to know. He joined the SI staff in 2014, having previously been published on Deadspin and Slate. Gartland, a graduate of Fordham University, is a former Sports Jeopardy! champion (Season 1, Episode 5).

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