The Philadelphia Phillies have hit their stride recently. A walk-off home run from Kyle Schwarber against the Los Angeles Dodgers made it six straight wins. But their momentum took a temporary halt in an intense game that featured an ejection of manager Rob Thomson.

In the sixth inning of the Phillies' Saturday matchup with the Dodgers, Aaron Nola requested a different ball but was instead given a pitch-clock violation. The umpire, Roberto Ortiz, felt like Nola was discarding balls in an attempt to reset the pitch clock. Thomson was livid and argued with Ortiz and third base umpire Bill Miller. He was tossed but given a standing ovation from the Philly crowd.

After the game, in which the Phillies lost 9-0 due partly to another strong game from Los Angeles pitcher Bobby Miller, Thomson and Nola sounded off on the ordeal. Both of them insisted that the pitchers have to be able to discard balls when necessary, according to Aaron Bracy of the Associated Press.

“I was feeling it and walking back to the mound,” Nola said, via AP. “The clock had started. I wanted to throw the ball off to get an extra second. Guess they didn’t like that. Balls are slick. I need to rub them up. Sometimes they’re chalky, sometimes they’re slick, sometimes the seams are bigger than others, sometimes they’re smaller.”

The pitch clock has been under scrutiny often during its debut season but the Phillies are already not very happy with the new rules. It was discovered that pitch-clock violations are more frequent at Citizens Bank Park than anywhere else in MLB.

“Part of the rule says you aren’t supposed to delay, but it doesn’t specifically talk about tossing baseballs out,” Thomson said, via AP. “Baseballs are all different. They feel different in a pitcher’s hand. Sometimes they get slick. I don’t know how you can tell a pitcher is throwing away a baseball because he doesn’t feel it or is trying to stall unless you’re a mind reader.”

The 2023 season has been a bumpy road for the Phillies, who have a record of just 31-33 so far.