With a series sweep looking imminent against the Baltimore Orioles this season, manager Craig Albernaz lost his cool. The Orioles suffered a series sweep at the hands of the Pittsburgh Pirates after they lost the third game, 8-2. During their series finale against the Pirates, following a heated exchange over a controversial call, the home plate umpire did not take kindly to Albernaz and dished out a punishment.

At the top of the third, with the Orioles already lagging at 6-0, Blaze Alexander was in the batter’s box. After the Pirates’ right-hander threw the first pitch to Alexander, Albernaz let his frustrations out against the umpire. As things quickly got heated, home plate umpire James Jean ejected Albernaz from the game. Jomboy Media posted a video of the incident on X.

“‘What the f—k are you doing?’ First career ejection for new Orioles manager Craig Albernaz,” the caption read.

Craig Albernaz is the newly appointed Orioles manager, hired in October 2025. Previously an associate manager for the Cleveland Guardians in 2025, the Orioles’ job is Albernaz’s first as an MLB manager. He became the twenty-first manager in the club’s history.

While Braxton Ashcraft threw his first pitch, Alexander was supposedly not ready. In the video, he can be seen dropping his batting stance and watching the ball go. While Jean called it a strike, Alexander did not think the pitch should have counted, as he was not ready.

For a pitch to be valid, a batter must be ready in the box and holding eye contact with the hurler with a minimum of eight seconds remaining in the pitch clock. If a pitch is thrown before the batter is ready, it ideally should not be counted.

Following Jean’s controversial call, the Orioles skipper started yelling from the dugout. After his ejection, Albernaz argued his case for about a minute on the field before heading out.

By the end of the match, Baltimore suffered in more ways than one, including a hit to starter Chris Bassitt. As Bassitt wrapped up early, the Orioles’ potential Monday night starter ended up throwing in relief.

Cade Povich takes up a relief role

The Baltimore Orioles had signed Chris Bassitt to a one-year, $18.5 million contract, aiming to add veteran presence in the rotation. However, Bassitt has been struggling with his command and recorded a rough start to the season, with a 14.21 ERA in 2 starts.

Bassitt exited the Pirates game after a 111.8 mph line drive from Oneil Cruz hit him hard in the second inning. Bassitt was then pulled for relief pitcher Cade Povich in the third inning.

Baltimore announced on Sunday that they have called up Cade Povich from Triple-A Norfolk.

This season, Povich had made one start in the minors, when he allowed six hits, 5 earned runs, and 2 homers with 8 strikeouts. Soon after he was called up to the majors, Covich made his first in-game appearance against the Pirates while relieving Bassitt.

Oneil Cruz’s 415-foot homer in the sixth inning came off Covich. The left-hander threw 5.2 innings, giving up 4 hits, 2 runs, 2 earned runs, and 1 homer, while striking out twice.

Covich was the potential starter for Monday against the Chicago White Sox, but the recent developments have made it unlikely. Baltimore has yet to announce who will be their starter in the upcoming match.