I have to say it: I’ve never seen this before, and of course it would involve Angel Hernandez, the much-criticized umpire who has missed strike calls and botched all sorts of calls over his career.
Here’s what happened on Friday: Lance Lynn was making his first start in spring training for the St. Louis Cardinals, when the veteran hurler was ejected in the third inning. Per reporter John Denton, Lynn said the two exchanged words over a questionable call and when Lynn pointed out the next pitch was a strike, he got tossed. Again: it’s spring training!
But it got weirder from there. Lynn needed to get some more work in, so he headed to the bullpen. But Hernandez didn’t apparently like that and had Lynn stopped and removed from the bullpen!
#STLCards RHP Lance Lynn on his ejection: "(Umpire Angel Hernandez) started chirping at the (Cards) dugout and I told him, 'They know it was a strike.' He told me, 'Let's go!' And I told him, 'I have five seconds on the pitch clock and I'll start whenever I feel like it.' …
— John Denton (@JohnDenton555) March 9, 2024
More Lance Lynn on his third-inning ejection: "I threw the next pitch and I was like, 'There's a strike!' And then it was 'see you later.' … I went and got another 20 pitches in the bullpen, so I'm in a good spot. I guess I got ejected out of play, too, technically."
— John Denton (@JohnDenton555) March 9, 2024
There’s video, too:
Here's video of #STLCards starter Lance Lynn getting ejected by Angel Hernandez in tonight's spring training start.
Lynn even got kicked out of the bullpen after trying to get some work in after the ejection.
📽️ by our freelancer, Hot Shots Video Productions pic.twitter.com/wkONEE5nbe
— Corey Miller (@corey_miller5) March 9, 2024
So weird!
