Why Red Sox’s Chris Murphy Pitched With Added Emotion In MLB Debut

Red Sox rookie Chris Murphy didn’t think twice about the recipient of the baseball from his first Major League Baseball out.

The relic went to Jessica Tovar’s mother, who was in attendance at Progressive Field on Wednesday night to watch Murphy make his big league debut in the middle game between Boston and Cleveland. Tovar, Murphy’s old babysitter and close family friend, died in July 2012 after a battle with rhabdomyosarcoma, a rare form of cancer. Murphy has “I play for Jessica” tattooed on his chest to commemorate Tovar, who the 25-year-old refers to as a sister.

Murphy pitched the final 3 1/3 shutout innings for the Red Sox on Wednesday and only allowed two hits while striking out five. The impressive debut was made all the more special for Murphy knowing a piece of Jessica was there watching him.

“Jessica’s mom was here,” Murphy told reporters, per MassLive. “It was special having her there. She’s never watched me play baseball as far as I can remember. She maybe watched me play in Little League but she hasn’t watched me play in a long time. So it was special that she was there. It meant the world.”

Murphy added: “I knew it was going to be emotional. I tried to compartmentalize but definitely one of those moments where I felt Jessica out there.”

The young southpaw admitted he “blacked out a little bit” when he took an MLB mound for the first time, but it didn’t take long for Murphy to look like he belonged in The Show. Red Sox manager Alex Cora thought Murphy’s first outing was “excellent,” especially considering he entered the game with traffic on the bases.