Bryce Harper stepped to the plate in the bottom of the ninth with his team down six runs. He went through his usual routine, locked in and ready. The first pitch looked outside, but the umpire called it a strike. Harper didn’t hide his disagreement, calmly telling the ump, “That’s not a strike, that’s a ball.” He kept chirping between pitches, not letting it go. Down 0-2, Harper fouled off a few pitches before flying out to center. As he returned to the dugout, he was still hot about the strike call.
Then things escalated. While Harper sat fuming on the bench, the ump tossed him from the game. No warning this time, just an ejection. Harper responded with frustration, calling the ump petty and terrible on his way out. Phillies manager Joe Girardi came out to argue, questioning the ejection and pointing out that Harper had been given no clear warning. The ump claimed Harper had already been warned twice.
Harper’s reaction and ejection became a bigger story than the at-bat. His frustration over one call carried into the dugout and cost him the rest of the game. Girardi tried to defend him, but even he admitted Harper could’ve handled it better.