ARIZONA MANAGER LOVULLO IS EJECTED FROM A DISTANCE
Garrett Richards’ fifthinning 0-2 curveball floated inside as Kevin Cron stuck out his left elbow. That was how home plate umpire Mark Ripperger saw it, and why he called Arizona’s designated hitter back to the plate in the fifth inning of Sunday’s game at Petco Park.
Diamondbacks manager Torey Lovullo didn’t see it that way and came out of the dugout to dispute the call. Lovullo did not exactly lose his cool during a heated conversation but became the first manager this season to be ejected.
His mask was on. He also made sure to stay several strides away from Ripperger, who was without a mask, while arguing his point.
“I asked the umpire to make sure he stayed away from me,” Lovullo said after the game. “That was the most important thing for me. I just remember my mask riding up on my face and it was making me a little uncomfortable. I felt like it was my responsibility to cover my face up. It’s nothing I’ve ever dealt with and I couldn’t predict was going to happen. I was just dealing with the circumstances as they were out in front of me. It was a little bit different, but I was very mindful of the space that needed to be created.”
As for Lovullo’s point, he argued — to no avail — that Cron deserved some leeway because Richards’ pitch was a ball. Cron wound up striking out in the at-bat instead of being awarded first base.
“I told him that if it was going to be a strike I could have lived with that a little bit more,” Lovullo said. “I said because it was going to be a ball I felt like he had a right to a certain point, to a certain spot, in the batter’s box. I haven’t had a chance to review it, so I don’t know what it looks like. I just know I became very frustrated by his explanation and went too far with it. That’s on me.”