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Pirates pitcher goes viral for his hilariously short pants

Originally posted on Larry Brown Sports | By Grey Papke | Last updated Apr 2, 2025 6:27 PM ET

Pittsburgh Pirates pitcher Dennis Santana raised some eyebrows on Wednesday for essentially wearing shorts on the mound.

Santana entered the game for the ninth inning of Wednesday’s game against the Tampa Bay Rays while sporting a highly unusual look. The reliever was wearing his socks so high, they looked more like shorts.

Have you ever seen this style of baseball pants??

Dennis Santana’s “pants” had the Rays broadcast in disarray pic.twitter.com/3daKAKlBzI
— MLB (@MLB) April 2, 2025

This is very much a new look for Santana. When he pitched on Saturday, he was wearing normal-length pants.

Dennis Santana pic.twitter.com/WzFGSk3aB4
— Los Piratas (@piratasbeisbol) March 29, 2025

It’s definitely a unique look, though it’s not clear how comfortable it was. Regardless, it worked fine for Santana, who pitched a scoreless inning with one walk to collect his first save of the year.

Santana appears to be the Pirates’ choice to close after David Bednar was demoted to the minors. The 28-year-old journeyman has a 4.75 career ERA, but managed a 2.44 ERA in 39 appearances with Pittsburgh last season.

After Bednar’s struggles, the closer job is likely Santana’s as long as he remains effective. Maybe the imitation shorts will be part of his recipe for success.

This article first appeared on Larry Brown Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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