DUNEDIN, Fla. — Philadelphia Phillies catcher J.T. Realmuto was ejected Monday in a spring training game against the Toronto Blue Jays for an awkward ball exchange that followed a pitch-clock violation.
Home plate umpire Randy Rosenberg had just finished calling a ball on Phillies pitcher Craig Kimbrel for taking too long on the mound when the at-bat in the fourth inning devolved into the bizarre ejection.
Kimbrel asked for a fresh ball after the violation, and Rosenberg threw him one. Kimbrel then threw out that baseball and asked for another. Rosenberg tried handing that ball to Realmuto to throw, but the catcher blindly turned his glove away and the ball dropped to the ground.