Former Major League Baseball star John Rocker and Patrick Mahomes Sr. were caught having a heated spat in the aftermath of Super Bowl LIX on the streets of New Orleans – a confrontation that has since escalated into an online feud.
A video of the pair being forced apart outside a bar has been widely circulated on social media since Sunday’s game. The two played in the majors around the same period in the 1990s and 2000s.
One bystander at the scene was heard second-guessing what they saw: “Is that ******* Johnny Rocker?”.
Mahomes Sr., 54, who played in the major leagues between 1992 and 2003, would have just watched his son, Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes lose inside of the Superdome to the Philadelphia Eagles before the incident.
In the viral clip, Mahomes is seen standing with two other men, before Rocker shouts “Hey!” and approaches to shake his hand. But Mahomes suddenly snaps his hand back and begins gesturing towards Rocker’s face while uttering words that are unclear from the video.
Shocked at his reaction, Rocker is seen standing in the street with his arms wide and palms open, asking: “What are you talking about?”
Patrick Mahomes Sr. calls John Rocker ‘a menace to society’ following tense spat in New Orleans (Getty Images)
Two friends with Mahomes attempt to intervene as the two men lock eyes and grow enraged at one another while Mahomes continues to gesture at Rocker’s face and continues to jibe.
As the situation spirals, both men are heard firing off a rally of profane statements at each other, as Rocker attempts to circle Mahomes.
Finally, one of the men manages to escort Mahomes away from the angered baseball star, who continues to swear and gesture at him as he leaves.
The pair then take their disagreement to X, with Mahomes writing: “John Rocker is a menace to society.”
Rocker responds an hour or so later, writing: “**** PATRICK MAHOMES”, “Mahomes is lucky he got away. I would have Rocked him”, and “Well that was an interesting night…GOOD MORNING EVERYONE”, in a spate of tweets.
Some have suggested the viral clip was a PR stunt to tease the possibility of a rumored celeb boxing match, though there has been no confirmation that this is the case.
The Independent contacted Mahomes and Rocker for comment.
