Red Sox Rookie Who Taunted Yankees Suffers Major Injury

A Boston Red Sox rookie who had some strong words about the New York Yankees earlier this season has suffered a huge injury.

Jul 11, 2025; Boston, Massachusetts, USA; Boston Red Sox pitcher Hunter Dobbins (73) is hurt after a play at first against Tampa Bay Rays outfielder Chandler Simpson (14) in the second inning at Fenway Park. Mandatory Credit: David Butler II-Imagn Images | David Butler II-Imagn Images

The New York Yankees' arch rival, the Boston Red Sox got some bad news last night. Rookie pitcher Hunter Dobbins tore his ACL in a play during the second inning against the Tampa Bay Rays.

In the video, posted by Talkin' Baseball on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter, Dobbins jumps to a base to tag out a Tampa Bay runner, hits the base, and then begins to hop on his left foot.

Hunter Dobbins tore his ACL on this play

It was the second inning of his first start back from an elbow injury pic.twitter.com/HcBN4J77qj
— Talkin’ Baseball (@TalkinBaseball_) July 12, 2025

Dobbins, who tore the same ligament in the same knee playing high school football, said after the game that he was trying to fight through the pain, but that it was all to familiar.

“Yeah. I’ve torn my ACL in this knee before and it was the same feeling,” he said, (h/t The Associated Press). “Kind of some denial went into it, tried to go through that warm-up pitch, felt the same sensation again so, at that point, I knew what it was.”

Dobbins made headlines with Yankees fans earlier this season when he said he would rather retire than play for New York, even if they were the only team offering him a contract.

"My dad was a diehard Red Sox fan,” Dobbins said, according to Gabrielle Starr of the Boston Herald. “And I’ve said it before, that if the Yankees were the last team to give me a contract, I’d retire.”

The Yankees were characteristic in their response to Dobbins. Infielder Jazz Chisholm Jr. shared on social media that he believes there should be more trash talk in baseball, and manager Aaron Boone said in an interview that Dobbins' comments reflected his love of his team.

While the rookie pitcher secured his team the win against the Yankees when he made these comments back in June, it appears as though New York got the last laugh: Dobbins is likely to miss out on the rest of the 2025 season while he recovers from the injury.

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