MILWAUKEE -- Brewers manager Craig Counsell didn't hold back after being ejected by home-plate umpire Jerry Layne during the fourth inning of Wednesday's 4-1 loss to the Pirates, arguing forcefully before being escorted away by first-base umpire Hunter Wendelstedt.
Pirates left fielder Adam Frazier was batting with two outs in the inning when he hit a chopper to first base that appeared to be the inning-ending out. But Layne then ruled that the baseball had hit Frazier's foot for a foul ball, extending the at-bat and raising Counsell's ire.
Fair/foul calls are only reviewable beyond first and third base, so Counsell's only recourse was to emerge from the dugout to argue. He did, then retreated, then returned for an animated argument with Layne, leading to the ejection.
"Overall, what upset me is he just missed the call," Counsell said. "More than anything, I felt like he changed his call."
"Usually," second baseman Scooter Gennett said, "when the guy fouls a ball off his foot, [the umpire] says it right away. He kind of waited for the whole play to develop, and then called it foul."
Counsell continued the discussion before Wendelstedt put his body between the skipper and Layne, directing Counsell back to the Brewers' dugout.
It was Counsell's third ejection this season and the fifth of his long Major League career, all in the past two seasons as a manager.
It's been a frustrating start to the Brewers' final homestand, with consecutive losses to the Pirates following wins in three of four games against the Cubs at packed Wrigley Field. Playing without Ryan Braun, who is home following the birth of a baby boy, the Brewers have been limited to four runs on 14 hits with 20 strikeouts in the first 18 games of this series against Pittsburgh.
Gennett hit the ball hard in each of his first three at-bats but was rewarded with only one hit, a first-inning double. His manager's ejection provided another dose of angst; it reminded Gennett of a similar play earlier this season, when he felt a foul tip hit his cleat but could not convince the umpires.
By rule, such plays are not reviewable. Should that change?
"I think the reason some plays aren't is it opens up a longer game," Counsell said. "More time to look at stuff. That's the reason it's not, but when you go through this and there's video where you can see what happens, and you can review other things, it gets frustrating."