Tensions flared at Petco Park on Monday night during the New York Mets’ game when manager Carlos Mendoza was forced to step in to protect his star player, Juan Soto, in a heated argument. In an act of sacrifice that cost him his own ejection, Mendoza charged at the home plate umpire to prevent Soto’s obvious frustration from escalating into a direct ejection from the game
The incident occurred in the third inning, with Juan Soto visibly enraged after an at-bat that ended with a called third strike, a pitch that, according to the replay, could barely have grazed the outside edge. However, Soto’s displeasure with umpire Emil Jimenez seemed to go beyond that single pitch, suggesting an accumulation of complaints that could have consequences at any time. Mendoza’s intervention was a clear attempt to deflect attention and absorb the ire of the game official.
A manager who defends his players
The tension reached its peak in Juan Soto’s next at-bat. With a runner on second base and only one out, Soto watched a pitch from the Padres’ Dylan Cease, which on a 2-1 count seemed clearly out of the strike zone. To Soto’s surprise, umpire Jimenez called it a strike, provoking an intense reaction from the batter, who angrily replied for several moments before trying to refocus on the duel with Cease.
The situation became untenable when Jimenez finally sang the third strike on the eighth pitch of the at-bat. Juan Soto, with overflowing fury, faced the umpire directly. It was at that moment that Carlos Mendoza, anticipating the inevitable, ran at full speed from the dugout. The manager stepped between Soto and Jimenez, firmly pushing his player toward the dugout and proceeded to continue the discussion himself. The result was Mendoza’s ejection, leaving bench coach John Gibbons in charge.
Another red card for Mendoza
Carlos Mendoza had to choose between the continuity of Juan Soto or sacrifice himself. The coach did not hesitate and decided to protect his player, which cost him an expulsion that is not reprehensible, but adds to the list of those he has been having lately.
This was Mendoza’s third ejection of the season and the fifth of his career, something that indicates that he has been having more problems with calls, since if out of five, three have been in the same season, beyond the fact that the last one was a “sacrifice”, something must be changed so that it does not continue to occur so frequently.
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