Brad Ausmus screams at ump, drops hoodie on plate after ejection
During his playing days as a catcher, Brad Ausmus had to develop strong relationships with umpires. He not only had to spend the entire game with the ump directly behind him, but if he buttered up the umpire enough, maybe he could get a few extra calls throughout the contest.
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As the Detroit Tigers manager, that’s no longer the case. Ausmus’ biggest allies have now become his worst enemies on the field. That much became obvious following Ausmus’ post-ejection tirade during Monday’s game against the Minnesota Twins.
Following a Nick Castellanos strikeout in the fourth inning, Ausmus was ejected from the contest for arguing balls and strikes. Before he accepted his fate and retreated to the dugout, Ausmus made sure to head out on the field and give the ump a piece of his mind.
Ausmus, who is normally pretty calm and level-headed, went absolutely nuts this time around. He stepped right up to the ump, screaming at him just inches from his face.
After orally expressing his displeasure with the call, Ausmus wasn’t done. As he was heading back to the dugout, Ausmus decided to take off his Tigers’ hoodie and place it directly on the plate. After a few more words in the ump’s direction, Ausmus decided the cool, Midwestern breeze felt good and decided to also toss his cap on the field.
Ausmus’ reaction may have been out of character, but it was easy to explain why he was frustrated with a quick glance at the box score.
The Tigers jumped out to a seemingly insurmountable eight-run lead in the bottom of the first inning. Given the early lead, this was the type of game where Ausmus’ club was supposed to cruise to victory with ease.
That wasn’t the case. The Twins clawed their way back into the contest, and by the fourth inning, the Tigers lead had been cut to just one run. Ausmus was probably pretty upset that his team allowed the Twins to get back into what should have been a sure-fire win, and the called strikeout sent him over the edge.
A few innings after the ejection, things looked pretty grim, as the Twins eventually tied things up. Though their manager was gone, the Tigers found a way to pull ahead, winning the contest 10-8 and sparing Ausmus an even more embarrassing post-game interview.
[Elsewhere: Rougned Odor doesn’t seem to regret punching Jose Bautista in the face]
If there’s a positive in all of this, it’s that Ausmus got his hat back, or at least found a new one while talking with the media after the game. It should be noted that he was not wearing a hoodie.
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Chris Cwik is a writer for Big League Stew on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at [email protected] or follow him on Twitter! Follow @Chris_Cwik
