The Hanwha Eagles and Kiwoom Heroes engaged in a bench-clearing incident. After being cited by the umpire for a pitch clock intentional delay, Cody Ponce (30) threw a pitch at a fast tempo, prompting Kiwoom's Im Ji-yeol (30) to react angrily, leading to a standoff between the players from both teams.
On the 22nd, during the game between Kiwoom and Hanwha in Daejeon, a problematic situation arose in the top of the 3rd inning with two outs and a runner on first base. After Hanwha's starting pitcher Ponce threw a ball on the first pitch, he took a slightly longer tempo before delivering the second pitch. As the pitch clock was about 6 seconds remaining, the home plate umpire, Moon Dong-kyun, called time before ordering Ponce to pitch quickly.
In response, Ponce began his pitch as soon as he received the ball. However, umpire Moon waved his hand and called time again, causing Im Ji-yeol to step out of the batter's box. While Ponce had already begun his pitching motion, the ball headed toward the catcher's mitt. Im Ji-yeol reacted sensitively to the ball that came without a play call, shouting at Ponce, which led to players from both teams coming onto the field for a bench-clearing incident.
There was a misunderstanding between the two players, and although a few words were exchanged, the situation was quickly resolved without any physical confrontation.
According to the Hanwha team, Ponce protested against the time called by umpire Moon Dong-kyun, but when Im Ji-yeol appealed to him, he insisted that it was "a protest directed at the umpire." According to the Kiwoom team, Im Ji-yeol was protesting because Ponce threw the ball while the umpire failed to make a play call and he was preparing to bat.
Although there was a moment of confusion, Ponce maintained his composure. In the ensuing at-bat, he consistently targeted the strike zone, putting pressure on Im Ji-yeol. With a ball count of 1-2, he struck out Im Ji-yeol with a fastball that entered high down the middle at 154 km/h on the fifth pitch. After completing the inning, he showed a bright smile as he walked down to the dugout.
While Im Ji-yeol did show a strong reaction, the incident was triggered by the umpire's pitch clock warning. On March 22, during the season opener against the Suwon KT, Ponce had also received a warning from umpire Park Geun-young in a similar situation with no outs and a runner on first base in the second inning. If there is time left on the pitch clock but the umpire determines that the pitcher is deliberately delaying throwing the ball, a warning can be issued at the umpire's discretion.
There is an ambiguous aspect since the umpire gives warnings at their discretion. Umpires have been particularly strict with Ponce, which has led to complaints from him and unforeseen misunderstandings involving Im Ji-yeol.
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