Clemson's Cam Cannarella ejected in middle of 13th inning against Tennessee

Clemson freshman centerfielder Cam Cannarella was ejected from the winners bracket regional game against Tennessee in the middle of the 13th inning on Saturday night. And the reason for tossing Cannarella appeared to be flimsy.

After Clemson turned a 4-6-3 double play to end a scoring threat in the top of the 13th inning and get to the plate with a chance to win the game in the bottom of the second, Cannarella appeared to say something to Zane Denton, the baserunner put out at second, as Cannarella ran to the dugout. The umps apparently ejected him for this.

With the ejection, Cannarella will be suspended for Clemson’s next game, now slated for Sunday morning against Charlotte.

When the broadcast came back for the bottom of the 13th inning, Clemson head coach Erik Bakich was seen in an animated discussion with the umpires. It wasn’t until Cannarella wasn’t up to bat in his lineup spot that the broadcasters figured out it was Cannarella who had been ejected.

When the broadcast returned for the top of the 14th inning, the ESPN broadcast showed the infraction from Cannarella.

This may be the most pathetic ejection I’ve ever seen, like I still don’t understand what happened. pic.twitter.com/Bte9fA13aL

— Mr Matthew CFB (@MrMatthewCFB) June 4, 2023

Color commentator Kyle Peterson took umbrage with the decision from crew chief and second base umpire Angel Campos.

“You cannot do that, not for that. I mean these kids have played 13 innings. Again, like you want to take emotion totally out of this game, that’s how you’re going to do it. If they’re going back and forth a little bit, they’re both going their own way, then so be it. But there’s zero, zero way that you can throw a kid out for doing that,” Peterson said. “Either one of them, and I don’t know what was said.”

Denton helped send the Tennessee-Clemson game to extra innings

Other than being the top, and not the bottom, of the ninth inning, it was the cliche scenario every kid cooks up in their head while swinging a bat in the backyard. But it was quite real for Tennessee’s Zane Denton.

Standing in the batters box in the top of the ninth inning against Clemson on Saturday in the winners bracket of the Clemson Regional, the Vols were down to their last gasp. Trailing by a pair of runs, and with two strikes in the count, Denton was at risk of squandering the baserunners on the corners.

He smashed the 2-2 pitch out to left field and gave Tennessee a 5-4 lead.

Clemson snagged a run back in the bottom of the ninth to send the game to extras, where Tennessee ultimately won, 6-5, after 14 innings.

THIS HAS TO BE A DREAM

VOLS PUT TWO ON WITH TWO OUTS AND ZANE BLASTS A THREE-RUN SHOT TO GIVE TENNESSEE THE LEAD DOWN TO ITS FINAL STRIKE pic.twitter.com/ekdI48lTSQ

— Tennessee Baseball (@Vol_Baseball) June 4, 2023