MLB Ejection 019 - John Libka (1; Chris Cron)

HP Umpire John Libka ejected Athletics hitting coach Chris Cron (quick pitch no-call; QOCN) in the bottom of the 1st inning of the #Royals-#Athletics game. With two out and none on, A's batter Carlos Cortes took a 0-0 fastball from Royals pitcher Michael Wacha for a called first strike. Replays indicate that Wacha engaged the pitcher's plate and in one motion delivered the baseball while Cortes was not reasonably set in the batter's box, the balk-no call was incorrect.* At the time of the ejection, the Royals were leading, 1-0. The A's ultimately won the contest, 5-2.

This is John Libka (84)'s 1st ejection of 2026.

Official Baseball Rule 5.07(a) Comment: "Pitchers may disengage the rubber after taking their signs but may not step quickly on to the rubber and pitch. This may be judged a quick pitch by the umpire."

OBR 6.02(a)(5) Comment: "A quick pitch is an illegal pitch. Umpires will judge a quick pitch as one delivered before the batter is reasonably set in the batter’s box. With runners on base the penalty is a balk; with no runners on base, it is a ball. The quick pitch is dangerous and should not be permitted."

This is the 19th ejection report of the 2026 MLB regular season.

This is the 3rd coach ejection of 2026. Ejection Tally: 12 Managers, 3 Coaches, 4 Players.

This is Oakramengas' 1st ejection of 2026, 2nd in the AL West (LAA 2; OAK? 1; HOU, SEA, TEX 0).

This is Chris Cron's first MLB ejection.

This is John Libka's 1st ejection since August 8, 2025 (Kevin Gausman; QOC = U [Balls/Strikes]).

Wrap: Minnesota Twins vs Tampa Bay Rays, 4/24/26 | Video as follows:

MLB Ejection 005 - James Jean (1; Craig Albernaz)

HP Umpire James Jean ejected Orioles manager Craig Albernaz (quick pitch no-call/strike one call; QOCY) in the top of the 3rd inning of the #Orioles-#Pirates game. With two out and none on, Orioles batter Blaze Alexander positioned himself in the batter's box as Pirates pitcher Braxton Ashcraft delivered a 0-0 pitch, ruled a strike. Replays do not indicate whether pitcher Ashcraft had started his windup before batter Alexander was reasonably set, the call was irrecusable.* At the time of the ejection, the Pirates were leading, 6-0. The Pirates ultimately won the contest, 8-2.

This is James Jean (61)'s 1st ejection of 2026.

Official Baseball Rule 6.02(a)(5): "A quick pitch is an illegal pitch. Umpires will judge a quick pitch as one delivered before the batter is reasonably set in the batter’s box. With runners on base the penalty is a balk; with no runners on base, it is a ball. The quick pitch is dangerous and should not be permitted."

This is the 5th ejection report of the 2026 MLB regular season.

This is the 5th manager ejection of 2026. Ejection Tally: 5 Managers, 0 Coaches, 0 Players.

This is Baltimore's 1st ejection of 2026, 1st in the AL East (BAL, BOS 1; NYY, TB, TOR 0).

This is Craig Albernaz's 1st career MLB ejection.

This is James Jean's 1st ejection since September 19, 2025 (Pete Walker; QOC = N [Balls/Strikes]).

Wrap: Baltimore Orioles vs Pittsburgh Pirates, 4/5/26 | Video as follows:

MLB Ejection 003 - Nic Lentz (1; Rocco Baldelli)

HP Umpire Nic Lentz ejected Twins manager Rocco Baldelli (pitch clock violation ball four call that was actually a quick pitch; QOCY) in the bottom of the 6th inning of the #Twins-#Royals game. With two out and none on, Royals batter Jonathan India prepared for a 3-2 pitch from Twins pitcher Simeon Woods Richardson, who motioned to his PitchCom system to indicate a potential malfunction before re-engaging and rushing a delivery prior to the expiration of the pitch timer, resulting in a violation call by HP Umpire Lentz. Replays indicate the pitcher timer appeared to show two seconds remaining when Woods Richardson re-engaged and began his rushed delivery, while the batter was not reasonably set after the pitcher's disengagement seconds earlier, the call was correct. At the time of the ejection, the Royals were leading, 4-1. The Royals ultimately won the contest, 4-2.

This is Nic Lentz (59)'s 1st ejection of 2025.

Official Baseball Rule 6.02(a)(5): "A quick pitch is an illegal pitch. Umpires will judge a quick pitch as one delivered before the batter is reasonably set in the batter’s box. With runners on base the penalty is a balk; with no runners on base, it is a ball. The quick pitch is dangerous and should not be permitted."

OBR Definition: "An ILLEGAL PITCH is (1) a pitch delivered to the batter when the pitcher does not have his pivot foot in contact with the pitcher’s plate; (2) a quick return pitch. An illegal pitch when runners are on base is a balk."

OBR Definition: "A QUICK RETURN pitch is one made with obvious intent to catch a batter off balance. It is an illegal pitch."

This is the 3rd ejection report of the 2025 MLB regular season.

This is the 1st manager ejection of 2025. Ejection Tally: 1 Managers, 1 Coach, 1 Players.

This is Minnesota's 1st ejection of 2025, 1st in the AL Central (MIN 1; CWS, CLE, DET, KC 0).

This is Rocco Baldelli's 1st ejection since August 25, 2023 (Carlos Torres; QOC = N [Balls/Strikes]).

This is Nic Lentz's 1st ejection since August 13, 2023 (Oscar Marin; QOC = Y [Balls/Strikes]).

Wrap: Minnesota Twins vs Kansas City Royals, 4/7/25 | Video as follows:

Laz Diaz Calls Nestor Cortes' Quick Pitch...for a Needlessly Complicated Reason

When HP Umpire Laz Diaz called Yankees pitcher Nestor Cortes for an illegal pitch vs Chicago, he told New York that Nestor stepped off and on the rubber, a technically correct reason to call a violation, but a lizard of a reason during a play where the primary illegal act was a quick pitch that didn't need a pivot foot vs pitcher's plate violation to be considered.

Official Baseball Rule 6.02(a)(5) Comment states, "A quick pitch is an illegal pitch. Umpires will judge a quick pitch as one delivered before the batter is reasonably set in the batter’s box. With runners on base the penalty is a balk; with no runners on base, it is a ball." (there were no runners.)

OBR's definition of Quick Pitch goes one step further: "A QUICK RETURN pitch is one made with obvious intent to catch a batter off balance. It is an illegal pitch."

One pitch prior to the play in question, Cortes delayed his delivery by throwing a "slow pitch"—a tactic he has employed in the past—only to then quick pitch White Sox batter Corey Julks on the very next pitch by hurrying his delivery as Julks was just starting to come reasonably set.

But instead of calling Cortes simply for making a quick return pitch with obvious intent to catch Julks unaware or unprepared, Diaz called a minute moment of Cortes's pivot foot breaking contact with the rubber before Cortes threw home.

Diaz's call was technically correct, but from a game management standpoint, a harder call to sell than the obvious quick pitch that occurred. This is because throughout baseball, if you slow it down and zoom in enough, you'll find that many pitchers routinely break contact between pivot foot and rubber during delivery, which sets a dangerous precedent.

Why is it called here and not when, say, Justin Verlander does it routinely? The answer is the same conclusion made at the very beginning of the article—it was a quick pitch, that's what made the sequence illegal. Just because we might know a rule doesn't mean we have to apply it to a situation which can be adjudicated using a much more obvious rule.

Video as follows: