Spring training baseball features some weird moments, and on Tuesday, that included a half-inning without umpires.
The Pirates hosted the Orioles in Bradenton, Fla., and Pittsburgh defeated Baltimore, 7-4, in 8 1/2 innings. However, the two teams had agreed beforehand to play a full nine innings even if the bottom of the ninth weren’t necessary, something that became available in 2021 as part of the updated COVID spring training rules.
Well, it doesn’t seem as though the umpires got the memo, as all four officials left the field after the Pirates got through the top of the ninth. So the two teams played the bottom of the ninth like a scrimmage without umpires.
