The postgame Fourth of July festivities were not the only fireworks seen at Dodger Stadium Wednesday night. During the Los Angeles Dodgers’ 6-4 win over the Pittsburgh Pirates, things got chippy between Dodgers reliever Daniel Hudson and first-base umpire Jeff Nelson.
After Hudson allowed a one-out single to Pirates catcher Elias Diaz in the sixth inning, Nelson yelled something at Hudson that the reliever took offense to. After some more shouting back and forth, Nelson ejected Hudson from the game.
Dodgers manager Dave Roberts stormed out of the dugout to argue the call. As Hudson left the field, Roberts continued to argue with Nelson while boos rained down from the Dodger Stadium crowd.
Scott Alexander entered and induced an inning-ending double play. Roberts, meanwhile, remained in the dugout as the Dodgers sealed their sweep-clinching win. After the game, Roberts explained Nelson’s reasoning for tossing Hudson and admitted the umpire was right to do so, via Kaelen Jones of MLB.com:
“He [Nelson] wanted Daniel to have the hand available for the runner to see or away from the eye,” Roberts said. “I don’t even know the exact specifics. All I know is, talking to Bob [Geren], my bench coach, Nelly had it right.”
It appears that after Roberts consulted with Geren and the Major League Baseball rulebook, he concluded that Nelson had good reason to confront Hudson.
Alexander went on to pitch a scoreless seventh inning in relief. After Edward Paredes allowed a two-run home run in the eighth, Kenley Jansen entered and recorded a five-out save.
Hudson had entered the game because Dodgers starter Rich Hill exited with a stiff neck. Hill suffered the injury when sliding awkwardly into home plate in the bottom of the fourth. Roberts said after the game that Hill’s injury status is considered “day-to-day”.
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