Tim Tebow strikes out twice, gets a standing O after hitting into double play in debut

Tim Tebow made his Grapefruit League debut Wednesday, and he struck out looking in his first at-bat as the New York Mets’ DH.

Tebow, batting eighth in the lineup and wearing No. 97, saw four pitches from Boston Red Sox right-hander Rick Porcello, the reigning AL Cy Young Award winner in the third inning. He swung (and missed) at only one pitch.

https://twitter.com/MLB/status/839563602914758656

Batting with the bases loaded and no out in the bottom of the fourth inning, Tebow grounded into a double play on an 0-2 count against Red Sox righty Noe Ramirez. That earned Tebow a standing ovation, but not an RBI. In his third at-bat in the sixth inning, he was hit on the shoulder by a pitch from lefty Brian Johnson – then was doubled off first on a line drive. He struck out looking for the second time in the eighth.

Tebow, 29, got the “call-up” from minor-league camp this week because the Mets are short-handed after 14 players left camp to participate in the World Baseball Classic. He is expected to play again for the Mets on Friday when they face the Houston Astros.

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The former Heisman-winning QB still faces long odds of ever appearing in a regular-season major-league game, but few imagined he’d get this far after announcing last August that he would pursue a career on the diamond – after not playing organized baseball since high school. Tebow hit just .194/.296/.242 with 20 strikeouts in 70 plate appearances during the Arizona Fall League.