Adley Rutschman couldn't believe his eyes.
Rutschman was stunned after being rung up in the bottom of the ninth inning of the Baltimore Orioles' 1–0 loss to the Kansas City Royals in Game 1 of their wild-card series.
The All-Star catcher was facing Royals closer Lucas Erceg with Baltimore trailing 1–0. He forced a 2-2 count with no outs and Ryan O'Hearn on first. Erceg fired a 93-mph changeup that sunk below the zone, and home plate umpire Ryan Additon called strike three. Rutschman was displeased.
Adley Rutschman wasn't happy with this strike three call in the ninth inning pic.twitter.com/Td7BfFZQVP
— Talkin’ Baseball (@TalkinBaseball_) October 1, 2024
He had a right to be upset, as the Gamecast on MLB.com indicated the pitch was low as well.
While the pitch wasn't egregiously far out of the zone, it was a ball. In that situation, the umpire has to be better. Instead of a 3-2 count with no outs, the Orioles were down to their final two outs.
Colton Cowser was up next and flew out to center, then pinch hitter Heston Kjerstad struck out swinging to end the game.
The Royals now lead the series 1-0. It may have been different if the umpire had gotten the call correct.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Adley Rutschman Furious Over Controversial Call in Ninth Inning of Orioles' Game 1 Loss.