Even when he was an all-star pitcher in the majors, Mark Mulder wasn’t known for being a fireballer.
But after the news that San Francisco 49ers rookie Ricky Pearsall was shot during a robbery attempt in San Francisco on the weekend, the former Oakland A’s star took to torching the city on social media.
“What an absolute hell hole of a city!” he wrote on X. “The mentally ill Libs will still tell you how beautiful it is all while they get mugged and step in s—.”
Pearsall reportedly was shot by a 17-year-old who tried stealing his Rolex in the Union Square area of the city on Saturday afternoon around 3:30 p.m.
The wide receiver was shot in the chest, but the bullet exited his body without hitting any vital organs, according to his mother, Erin.
The 23-year-old was released from San Francisco General Hospital and Trauma Center on Sunday according to a statement from the team.
“A struggle between Mr. Pearsall and the suspect ensued and gunfire from the suspect’s gun struck both Mr. Pearsall and the subject,” San Francisco Police Chief Bill Scott said during a news briefing.
Officers in the area responded immediately, providing aid and arrested the suspect, who has been identified as a 17-year-old male resident of Tracy, Calif., about 100 km east of San Francisco. The suspect’s condition was not disclosed.
“This is how we hold people accountable in San Francisco. Robberies and any violence like this will not be tolerated in our city,” San Francisco Mayor London Breed said at a news conference.
Mulder, who played five seasons in nearby Oakland while making two all-star teams, is just the latest athlete to criticize the city of San Francisco.
Hoops icon turned broadcaster Charles Barkley blasted the city during this year’s NBA all-star game, asking Reggie Miller if he would enjoy “being around a bunch of homeless crooks in San Francisco.”
Former San Francisco Giants star Buster Posey also suggested that crime and drugs in the city hurt the team’s chances of signing free agents like Shohei Ohtani, when the Japanese star was on the market this past off-season.