SAN FRANCISCO — When he met with reporters after being ejected Tuesday night at Oracle Park, Giants manager Gabe Kapler said he was jealous of the TV crowd, noticing more what you see that way than you see from the dugout. Kapler’s specific vantage point on Tuesday proved costly.
MLB announced Friday that Kapler was suspended one game and fined an undisclosed amount for “returning to the dugout following his fourth inning ejection in Tuesday night’s game.” Kapler will serve the suspension Friday night against the Atlanta Braves, where bench coach Kai Correa will take over.
Kapler was ejected after yelling from the dugout after a missed call by rookie Wade Meckler. He came out to argue with home plate umpire Chad Whitson before leaving the field.
The Giants went on to win 7-0 after a couple of spirited rallies, one of which included Joc Pederson’s ridiculous slide at the plate.
Asked later about Pederson’s slide, Kapler said he watched it on TV in the cage and enjoyed seeing different shots of Pederson’s facial expressions. Asked about the energy the Giants showed after the ejection, Kapler admitted he never returned to his office.
“I don’t remember if it was my first time watching the game in the cage or right behind the stairs,” he said. “We have the cage up and running. It will be very interesting to see the location of the pitches and how effective our pitchers are in the game.”
The batting cage at Oracle Park is just a few feet from the dugout and is located on a short flight of steps, Kapler explained. MLB has been strict over the years about rule enforcement, and most managers generally watch the rest of the game from their office or another area of ​​the clubhouse after an ejection.
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