A baseball reporter was caught in an awkward moment by his mute button during a Zoom call with new San Francisco Giants pitcher Justin Verlander.
The 41-year-old right-hander arrived in San Francisco in free agency and met with the Giants media on Monday to talk about the final chapter of his career.
But before things got moving, a reporter who thought he was on mute noticed that Verlander’s Zoom name was that of his wife, Hollwood actress Kate Upton.
“Look at Justin’s name,” the reporter can be heard exclaiming excitedly as Buster Posey, the Giants’ president of baseball operations, spoke.
A Giants media officer quickly reminded people to mute their microphones before Verlander stepped in and saw the funny side.
“I’ll change it, okay,” he said, holding up his hands jokingly. “I’ll change it.”
New San Francisco Giants pitcher Justin Verlander pictured with his wife Kate Upton
Verlander’s wife inadvertently became a topic of conversation during his first Giants press conference
The reporter in question was Taylor Wirth, who works for NBC. He also laughed it off, jokingly calling himself “a bum” in response to one of the viral tweets about the incident.
The pitcher has been married to Upton since 2017 — they had a wedding in Tuscany, Italy, just two days after Verlander won the World Series with the Houston Astros.
Verlander has signed a one-year deal with the Giants for the 2025 season – the fourth team of his impressive career.
‘I think you can see that the passion is still there. The fire is still burning,” he said when speaking about baseball instead of his Zoom name on Monday.
He turns 42 next month but highlights the shoulder and neck problems that derailed his 2024 season with the Astros.
‘I really consider the problems of the past year as… [having the] “The potential to send me on the path I want to take to finish my career and be able to play until I’m 45 or older,” he said.
‘I have achieved enough in my career. I wouldn’t come back if I didn’t think I could be great.’