Things got a little crazy during the second inning of the Diamondbacks-Cardinals game on Sunday. In the top of the frame, A.J. Pollock worked a full count against Luke Weaver before getting rung up on a called strike three by home plate umpire Tim Timmons. The call sparked a disagreement between Pollock -- it appeared to be the second bad call against the D-backs in four at-bats -- and prompted club manager Torey Lovullo to take up the balls-and-strikes argument against Timmons as well.
While Pollock stormed off and Timmons attempted to eject Lovullo, Cardinals backstop Yadier Molina stepped into the fray:
It appears that the field mics caught Lovullo referencing to Molina as "this motherfucker," and I can see why that would set Molina off.
— Zach Buchanan (@ZHBuchanan) April 8, 2018
It only got worse from there: In the middle of Lovullo’s confrontation, Molina tried to shove the D-backs’ skipper and was blocked from doing so by Timmons, who knocked the catcher’s mask off in the process and then tried to curb the subsequent benches-clearing standoff.
Here’s how the whole thing unfolded:
* A.J. Pollock and David Peralta yelling at the ump.
— Bally Sports Arizona (@BALLYSPORTSAZ) April 8, 2018
* Torey Lovullo's first ejection of the season.
* Yadier Molina going after Lovullo.
* Both dugouts/bullpens clear.
"This all instigated by a horrible strike 3 call again by Tim Timmons." -- Bob Brenly. pic.twitter.com/MWfftMwV2t
Neither Pollock nor Molina appeared to receive ejections for their role in the confrontation. The game is still tied 0-0 in the fourth.
