Atlanta Braves Morning Chop and Box – Whining…and Babies

Aug 25, 2013; Cleveland, OH, USA; Cleveland Indians first baseman Nick Swisher (33) reacts after being called out by second base umpire John Hirschbeck. Apparently he had higher standards than we knew. Mandatory Credit: David Richard-USA TODAY Sports

Whining Umpires…

The Braves ended up playing with a short bench last night, as John Hirschbeck saw fit to excuse Freddie Freeman from the rest of the night’s festivities, and another umpire (unclear who) told Jonny Gomes that he wasn’t welcome to stay, either.

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Gomes was given a stealth ejection after Andrelton Simmons was thrown at in the 7th inning – apparently in retaliation for the incident explained below.  Gomes, who was not in the game at the time, came about two steps out of the dugout with hands in pockets and started hollering toward pitcher Rafael Martin, the Nationals bench… or anybody else who would hear him.

Seems that’s all it took for him to be ejected.

But it was the Freeman ejection that stands out.

ICYMI, allow me to set the scene.  Andrelton Simmons is now on third base with two outs in the bottom of the fifth inning.  That happened after an infield single and one of Doug Fister‘s two errant throws to first.  This was the play in which Kung Fu Simba ‘slid’ into Yunel Escobar‘s glove, knocking glove, ball and maybe part of Escobar’s hand into the third base coaches box.  Enter Freeman, which a chance to knock him in, or at least extend the inning.  Note it was a 2-1 lead for Atlanta at the time.

There’s a full count on Freddie.  He check-swings on ball four, then starts toward first base, even as Bill Welke is appealing to Hirschbeck at third for a ruling on the swing (hint:  he really, truly didn’t go – it was kinda close, but no).  Freeman is called out.

Freddie stopped in his tracks  about halfway to first base.  Not sure how much of this he’s trying to “sell” between the immediate run to first or the incredulous look he’s now giving Hirschbeck.  He hollered a couple of words across to the umpire, and then it was “on”.

At this point, I’ll quote from Cory McCartney at Fox Sports:

"Freeman said afterward he told Hirschbeck the call wasn’t right, but stressed he didn’t make it personal. “I was just walking toward first base and I just told him … I didn’t say ‘You’re bad,’ I said ‘That’s bad’ a few times and (Hirschbeck) started pointing at me,” Freeman said. “I kind of looked in the dugout and I heard him say ‘Shut your f’n mouth.’ So that’s when I kind of looked at him and just (waved him off). Once I raised my hands is when he kicked me out.”"

At one point, Freddie was checking behind him to see if Hirschbeck was talking at someone else, for I don’t believe Freeman believed that the things he had said to Hirschbeck justified a response like that.

Chipper Jones weighed in via twitter as well:

…and that about sums it up.  Apparently Hirschbeck is one Who Must Not Be Questioned.  The problem today?  He’ll be behind the plate calling balls and strikes.