Cubs manager Joe Maddon’s night ended early in the first game of the NLCS on Saturday.
With the Dodgers leading Chicago 4-2 in the seventh inning, Los Angeles shortstop Charlie Culberson reached second on a double and three batters later, he attempted to score on a single by Justin Turner.
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Cubs left fielder Kyle Schwarber picked up the hit. He then threw a one-hop strike to home that was corralled by catcher Willson Contreras, who quickly dropped his shin guard in front of the plate, preventing Culberson from reaching home, before tagging him out.
What a play by Contreras, new #mlb rules ruin baseball. pic.twitter.com/UrYU9CsdxV
— Mark Hardwick (@rmhardwick) October 15, 2017
But, following replay review, the umpires determined that Contreras had blocked home plate too early and Los Angeles was granted the run, increasing its lead to 5-2.
Maddon then entered the field to argue the call and was promptly ejected.
Maddon has previously expressed his displeasure with the rule preventing catchers from blocking home before they have possession of the ball.
"The rule does not belong in the game,” Maddon said following a Cubs loss to the Cardinals in mid-May. “I could not disagree more with the spirit of this rule. … They (the umpires) know that the game was not intended to be manipulated in a sense where you lose based on a fabrication."
The Dodgers took Game 1 by a 5-2 tally.