In a captivating episode during the recent game between the Arizona Diamondbacks and the San Francisco Giants, manager Torey Lovullo found himself ejected in the eighth inning, igniting a mix of drama and controversy on the field. Following a contentious obstruction call that set off his emotions, Lovullo decided to humorously reciprocate by pretending to eject each of the four umpires—a scene that certainly did not go unnoticed.
While the Diamondbacks ultimately triumphed with an 8-7 victory, the tensions rose primarily due to the disputed call, which played a significant role in the game’s atmosphere. Lovullo made his feelings abundantly clear through exaggerated gestures aimed at each umpire during his playful mock ejections.
Interestingly, Lovullo later acknowledged that the obstruction ruling was indeed correct, stating, “They’re really good. Umpires are good. I stand corrected.” This acknowledgment provided an unexpected twist to the narrative, highlighting a moment of humility amidst the heat of competition.
The events unfolded with Giants’ player Christian Koss on first base and two outs in the eighth inning, trailing 8-6. Heliot Ramos hit a ground ball that third baseman Eugenio Suarez managed to stop, but his throw to first base arrived just a fraction too late to beat Ramos. As Koss attempted to advance to second, he collided with Arizona’s second baseman Jordan Lawlar, resulting in a chaotic moment that seemed to leave Koss injured as he was tagged out.
However, the umpiring crew huddled and concluded that Lawlar’s actions constituted obstruction, a decision that pushed Lovullo into a spirited confrontation with crew chief Mark Ripperger. Reflecting on his initial frustrations, Lovullo remarked, “In the heat of the moment, it wasn’t adding up to me… But in reality, there was obstruction called.”
Lovullo later raised questions about the attention of the third-base umpire, Nic Lentz, suggesting it was challenging to adjudicate both the fair-foul aspect while considering the obstruction. Despite his initial disbelief, he ultimately conceded, “But he pointed to it and he had it.”
Fortunately for Lovullo and the Diamondbacks, the obstruction ruling did not alter the game’s final outcome, as Koss remained on the field and both Ramos and Koss were stranded after Wilmer Flores popped up to catcher Jose Herrera.
In the end, Lovullo’s ejection became a side note in a game that saw the Diamondbacks secure two wins in a three-game series against the Giants. Reflecting on the incident, Lovullo stated, “When I looked at ’em, nobody put their hands up. Nobody put their hands out and pointed obstruction, and that’s why I thought they were kind of inventing a call, but they got it right.”
Thus, the evening concluded not just with a pivotal win for Arizona, but also with an unexpected lesson in sportsmanship and respect for the umpiring process.
