The Boston Red Sox (66-60) entered Tuesday's road game against the Houston Astros in need of a big win. More dreadful defense and untimely ejections perfectly summed up what was a bitter 7-3 defeat that now puts the club five full games out of a postseason slot.

Alex Verdugo, one of those aforementioned ejections, was not happy about being tossed in the fourth inning and gave his blunt opinion of how umpire Pat Hoberg handled the situation.

“I understand the human error aspect of it and you’re not going to get every call,” he said postgame, per MassLive.com's Christopher Smith. “But don’t be so sensitive when we let you know our side of it. You know what I mean? That’s baseball. Have a little bit of tougher skin and deal with it.”

The 27-year-old outfielder's criticisms of Hoberg come after he was thrown out from the dugout. The strike zone was a hot issue throughout the night, and led to manager Alex Cora also being ejected three innings later. Verdugo claimed he was just chirping, as he occasionally does with umps, and expected to at least be given a warning before being outright removed from the game.

Aleex Verdugo did not explicitly reveal what he said, so fans will just have to speculate. However, his presence was surely needed for such a critical matchup. He was coming off a three-hit showing on Monday and is one of the better fielders the Red Sox have at their disposal. He was 0-for-2 at the time but still could have made a significant difference.

That being said, his comments are worth examining. If Hoberg did deviate from an unwritten code as Verdugo suggests, then that could be a problem. Voicing displeasure with an umpire or official is a part of almost every major sport. There is obviously a line that cannot be crossed, but discretion is also expected. It can be a difficult tightrope to walk.

Unfortunately, it was Verdugo who fell to the ground this time. And the Sox followed. Boston has to forget about this poor performance quick, as Wednesday's battle can reasonably be considered a must-win.