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MLB spring training: Pirates and Orioles play umpire-less baseball for needless bottom of the 9th

Feb 28, 2023

The Baltimore Orioles and Pittsburgh Pirates lived the dream Tuesday: baseball without umpires.

Well, actually, baseball with no umpires would probably be more like a nightmare, but the two teams had to make due after their umpiring crew left the ball game when the Pirates, the home team, finished the top of the ninth inning leading 7-4.

In normal baseball rules, the game would've been over, and the Pirates would've started shaking hands, but because this is spring training, the two teams wanted to play on to give their players as much time on the field as possible.

The result was a half-inning of the teams calling their own balls, strikes and outs, sandlot-style:

Source: Yahoo Sports

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