Marooned inside a cramped office, barred from returning to the dugout, Dodgers manager Dave Roberts fixed his eyes on a television for the final inning of one of the most tumultuous games of the season.
As Kyle Farmer stepped into the batter’s box against Cubs reliever Justin Wilson, Yasmani Grandal huffed up the steps into the clubhouse. He had just been ejected from the game by umpire Tripp Gibson. Four innings earlier, Gibson threw out both Roberts and Matt Kemp. Farmer was only at the plate because Kemp’s spot in the batting order had come up.
“If it wasn’t for me getting kicked out,” Kemp said afterward, “Farmer wouldn’t have came up and hit that double.