Welcome back to another edition of The Ump Show. Yesterday, thanks to some Trea Turner and Alec Bohm heroics, the Philadelphia Phillies avoided getting swept by the Arizona Diamondbacks, winning 6-5 in extras. 

The Ump Show started in the top of seventh inning after home plate umpire stopped the game to walk halfway out to the mound to make sure that Connor Brogdon moved one of the rosin bags to the back of the mound because he thought it was a distraction. 

Needless to say, John Kruk wasn’t happy at all on the NBC Sports Philly broadcast and had this to say as the incident unfolded. 

Kruk: “What are we doing now?! Oh god.

T-Mac: “Gotta move the rosin bags…”

Kruk: “Yeah..now which one? You have 18 of them out there!” 

*Ump begins to walk out to Brogdon*

Kruk: “Ah f[uck]”

T-Mac: “John…watch it [laughs]”

Kruk: “Is he throwing sidearm? Is his hand dragging the ground? Is his knuckles dragging the ground? Then how the hell does that rosin bag cause a distraction?! UN-FRICKEN-REAL!”

Umpire Stops Game, Connor Brogdon Forced to Move Rosin Bag to the Back of the Mound

As if the top of the seventh inning wasn’t enough, Trea Turner tied the game in the bottom of the ninth inning on a 2-run home run and Craig Kimbrel took the mound in the top of the 10th inning and was facing D-Backs’ third baseman Josh Rojas. 

The Ump Show continued.

Kimbrel was initially given a warning by the home plate umpire for getting “set” on the mound before Rojas had entered the batters box and was given time to get “ready and alert” which basically means taking his batting stance and then acknowledging the pitcher on the mound by looking at him. 

The batter needs to be completely in the batters box and “alert to the pitcher” before the pitcher is allowed to get set in his stance.

I know, it sounds completely ridiculous and really like a child wrote that, but that’s the new rule with the MLB pitch clock nonsense so here we are. 

The game attempted to resume but the home plate umpire again, paused the game to have a few words with Rojas, which you can assume it was in regards to him getting fully in the batters box and acknowledging Kimbrel on the mound, who appeared to be set in his signature stance already. 

Crew chief Adrian Johnson came down to explain the situation to the home plate umpire. Rojas was clearly unhappy with the situation, arguing with the umpire as the rest of the crew gathered to discuss what was happening as D-Backs manager Torey Lovullo came out to hold back Rojas and figure out what the hell was going on. 

Ump Show Part 2 – Josh Rojas and Craig Kimbrel

At this point, the entire situation was completely ridiculous. We’re in extra innings and were forced to watch Lovello and the entire umpire crew sit there and have a full blown conversation about the incident.

Pretty contradictory for the game of baseball, who is doing literally everything to speed up the game and make things as fast as possible, right?

JT Realmuto, hands behind his back, wondering what the hell was happening

Rojas and Lovello were unhappy that he wasn’t rewarded a free ball after the incident.

The entire situation took just about 3-4 minutes up until this point and just when you thought it was over with nothing be assessed to either the Phillies or D-Backs, the umpire called it AGAIN on Kimbrel.

Rojas was awarded a free ball to make the count 1-2, which pissed off Rob Thomson, who got up from the dugout to go voice his displeasure with the umpire crew. 

Again, Rob Thomson was now pleading the case that Rojas was in the box and once he’s in there, he needs to acknowledge the pitcher and stop wasting everyone’s time. 

The umpire is saying that Rojas is not fully in the box and has to become alert to the pitcher before Kimbrel can get set. 

Rojas has to be looking at Kimbrel with at least eight seconds left on the pitch clock. If he has his head down with seven seconds or fewer on the pitch clock, then the violation would is assessed to Rojas instead of Kimbrel, which would have been strike three and the second out of the inning for the Phillies. 

Kimbrel wasn’t happy and told Rojas to basically quit fucking around and let’s play baseball. 

This is obviously tough for a pitcher like Kimbrel who has such a unique set up stance before throwing a pitch. 

Umpire AGAIN stops game, issues violation on Kimbrel for getting set before Rojas

Look, all of this is obviously annoying and to think this is happening more and more frequently now, at the end of May, and there’s still months of baseball to be played, is ridiculous. Just think if this was in the postseason and the umpire crew is enforcing shit like this that changes the result of a ballgame that actually matters.

That would be chaos!

It’s such a ticky-tacky rule that makes umpires look like complete morons and takes away any type of mental strategy between the pitcher and the batter. Baseball fans want to see Kimbrel get set and Rojas carefully entering the batters box trying to throw him off rhythm.

That’s the good stuff that makes baseball interesting!

Not whatever this is. With 5+ minute delays to figure out if the batter was looking at the pitcher so he can get set to pitch in the top of the 10th inning, man on second, one out in a tie ball game while the Phillies look to avoid getting swept after mounting a five-run comeback where Trea Turner hit a 2-run home run with two outs in the bottom of the ninth inning.

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