Major League Baseball is looking into the circumstances that led to Washington Nationals general manager Mike Rizzo being ejected from a luxury box in Atlanta for yelling at umpires.
Rizzo was tossed in the seventh inning Sunday. Veteran crew chief Joe West said he told the commissioner’s office on Friday that Rizzo had been hollering at the umps earlier in the Nationals-Braves series.
“I wouldn’t take that from a player. I wouldn’t take that from a manager,” West told The Associated Press. “If it was Donald Trump, I’d eject him, too. But I’d still vote for him.”
MLB said it had started an inquiry.
At one point, one of the umpires could be heard saying "call security" and followed up with "okay, we'll wait for ya."
“We have already been in communication with the Nationals regarding what transpired during today’s game, and we will speak with the umpiring crew today,” MLB said in a statement. “We will expect Joe West’s crew to provide a full account of their perspective, and we will follow up with them accordingly.”
The TV broadcasters alluded to the possibility that Rizzo was ejected for not wearing a mask, but West indicated it had to do with the GM yelling down at the umpires.