It was another eighth inning in another close game back in 2019, and Jordan Hicks raced up the bullpen’s mound to get ready for another save. That was when Hicks “let out a loud yell” and doubled over a nearby railing as if his hamstring flung apart or his ankle crunched, teammate Ryan Helsley recalled.
“My heart stopped,” bullpen coach Bryan Eversgerd said, shaking his head. “Oh god.”
Hicks flashed a grin at his stunned coach, got to his feet, warmed his heater, secured the save, and left Helsley, a rookie, astonished by how composed Hicks was to pull off a prank — and close a game.