J.T. Realmuto got tossed for moving his glove from the umpire in the most ridiculous MLB ejection

We’ve seen some preposterous decisions from big-league umpires over the years, but I don’t think anything is going to top what happened to Phillies catcher J.T. Realmuto on Monday.

He was essentially ejected for a simple miscommunication with home plate umpire Randy Rosenberg.

The incident happened during the fourth inning of a Grapefruit League game between the Phillies and Blue Jays. Craig Kimbrel was called for a pitch-clock violation, and shortly after that, Realmuto reached his glove back asking for a new baseball. He either thought that Rosenberg was throwing the ball to the pitcher or he saw that Kimbrel already had a ball. So, Realmuto moved the glove away. It just happened right as Rosenberg was dropping the baseball into the glove.

Homeplate umpire Randy Rosenberg ejects JT Realmuto for this pic.twitter.com/dkQtpU1bHt

— Tim and Friends (@timandfriends) March 27, 2023

That late movement caused Rosenberg to botch the exchange, and he immediately responded by ejecting Realmuto from the game. Evidently, he thought Realmuto was trying to show him up by moving the glove away. But really, that’s a stretch. Realmuto was looking towards the mound as that happened. He couldn’t see what the umpire was doing.

A simple explanation could have cleared it all up, but Rosenberg — who made his MLB umpiring debut in 2020 — adamantly stood by the ejection. Realmuto, in disbelief, left the field while fist pumping.

pic.twitter.com/LANLEXKLN1

— Matt Gelb (@MattGelb) March 27, 2023

MLB fans also couldn’t believe that sequence led to an ejection.