Watch: Minor league manager, catcher tossed in strange meltdown
In another instance of minor league managers losing it, Pensacola Blue Wahoos head man Pat Kelly shared a ninth-inning meltdown with his catcher, Kyle Skipworth during Saturday's game against the Biloxi Shuckers.
First of all, raise your hand if you knew there was a baseball team called the Blue Wahoos. Bonus points if you knew about the Shuckers.
But I digress. Kelly and Skipworth were both tossed, and in the process, proceeded to leave their jerseys and gear, respectively, on the field.
It's really not that clear who said what, but home plate umpire Alex Ziegler tossed Skipworth after a foul ball behind home plate, according to the Pensacola News Journal. Kelly said the ump swore at Skipworth, which ticked him off, and then denied it after the manager left the dugout to investigate the situation.
“Obviously, we have to control ourselves," Kelly told the News-Journal. “But when an umpire cusses at you first, it has a tendency to escalate the situation. [Ziegler] wouldn't admit that he said anything to escalate the situation. I have no problem.If you are having a bad night, you are having a bad night. Both teams didn't like the strike zone, so obviously it wasn't very good."
After Skipworth tossed his gear in the direction of Ziegler and left the field, Kelly was heated, pretended to eject every umpire, used the rosin bag as deodorant to convey his thoughts on the night's overall officiating, and headed for the clubhouse to cheers from the crowd.
“When I'm upset, I do a lot of things,” Kelly reportedly said. “It's not something you plan. Things just happen. I wasn't happy with the crew the whole night.”
- Jeremy Woo
