"I’m just tired of him getting the bad end of those calls"- Rangers manager Bruce Bochy shares his take on fifth ejection of 2024 against Red Sox
The Texas Rangers took yet another beating on Tuesday against the Boston Red Sox, which also included Bruce Bochy being ejected for the fifth time this season and the 86th time in his career.
It happened in the sixth inning, with the Rangers trying to cut a 6-0 deficit. The Rangers offense put together a string of hits, cutting the deficit to 6-4. With rookie Wyatt Langford at the plate and runners in scoring position, the Rangers were edging closer to tying the game or even taking the lead.
However, the home plate umpire called a strike on the 2-2 pitch by Lucas Sims, ending the Rangers' inning and avoiding a potential addition to their score. Bochy wasn't having it with him getting into verbal with the umpire, leading to his ejection.
The veteran manager vented his frustration with his team getting on the wrong end of the calls a bit too frequently according to him.
“We had the bases [loaded] and we created the situation that we were hoping for that could give us a chance to tie the game or take the lead,” Bochy said. “The pitch on Langford, this kid's gotten the bad end of those calls too many times. It's just gotten old. It's hard to tell from our dugout, but I know he was frustrated.
"That's why I went out there. I'm just tired of him getting the bad end of those calls. It's a big call. The bases were loaded, and it would have put a little more pressure on the pitcher, and the call went their way.”
Wyatt Langford reflects on the strike three call which led to Bruce Bochy's ejection
Things got heated in the middle when the home plate umpire called strike three on Wyatt Langford. Langford, who has been on the wrong side of such calls, said:
“I thought it was off [the plate],” Langford said. “Looking back, it was. And [catcher Connor Wong], I kind of thought he caught it pretty bad, too, so that kind of made the point even more so.
"It's always frustrating, because there's nothing to do about it after the fact, even if it's wrong. I mean, it was close, I get it, but it sucks. Again, it’s frustrating.”
For the Rangers, it was a challenging night at Fenway Park. Their defense gave up nine runs, with a cluster of them coming in the fifth inning, which derailed their hopes of getting back into the game. Starter Jose Urena gave up six earned runs in his 4.1 innings, while Jose Leclerc gave up three more in the eighth inning.
The Rangers ended up losing the game 9-4.
With a 55-65 record, every loss from now on will be detrimental to their postseason hopes. They are 9.5 games behind division leaders, the Houston Astros, and will need to string some wins together if they want a shot at defending their title in October.