New York Mets manager Carlos Mendoza made sure umpire Roberto Ortiz knew how he felt about his calls during Saturday's game against the Pittsburgh Pirates.
Mendoza started going off on Ortiz from the dugout during the top of the fourth inning when a pitch thrown to Mark Vientos on a 3-0 count appeared to be a ball. Vientos prepared to walk to first, but Ortiz called the pitch a strike. Mendoza was clearly upset about the call.
Mendoza didn't stop yelling from there. By the bottom of the fourth inning, Mendoza was fed up again when Ortiz called one of pitcher Brandon Waddell's sinkers a ball instead of a strike. Ortiz ended up ejecting Mendoza from the game while hearing him bark, which ended up lighting more of a fire under the Mets manager. Mendoza jumped out of the dugout, ran up to Ortiz and began shouting directly in his face. Watch the heated interaction below.
Carlos Mendoza has been ejected from the game after arguing balls and strikes with umpire Roberto Ortiz pic.twitter.com/oT1Ru1dmNE
— SNY (@SNYtv) June 28, 2025
This was the first time this season Mendoza's been ejected, so it's clear the situation really upset him. It can't help that the Mets have lost 11 of their last 14 games.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Mets' Carlos Mendoza Ejected After Lighting Up Umpire for Strike Calls vs. Pirates.
