East Carolina finished with the best record in the American Athletic Conference and picked up the No. 1 seed for the college baseball tournament.
The Pirates started their quest for the NCAAs on Tuesday with a loss against South Florida, but it did not come without some strangeness.
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American Athletic Association logo during a game between the Houston Cougars and the East Carolina Pirates at Lewis Field at Clark LeClair Stadium in Greenville, North Carolina, on April 29, 2018. (Greg Thompson/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
Jacob Starling started the game off right for the Pirates, clobbering a home run in the first at-bat of the game for East Carolina. Carter Cunningham then hit one of his own right behind him and just like that the Pirates tied the game 2-2 in the first inning.
However, if the Pirates were going to use pitcher Josh Grosz during the game, the plan was foiled due to a bizarre sequence after Starling’s home run. Grosz was ejected from the game after he handed Starling a sandwich when the batter came around the bases and back in the dugout.
COLLEGE BASEBALL UMPIRE APPEARS TO TELL COMPLAINING BATTER ‘F— YOU’ AFTER STRIKEOUT
Storm clouds over the stadium before the NCAA Baseball Greenville Regional between the East Carolina Pirates and the South Carolina Gamecocks at Lewis Field at Clark-LeClair Stadium in Greenville, North Carolina, on June 2, 2018 (Greg Thompson/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
Pirate Radio on Twitter posted a photo of Grosz holding the sandwich in the dugout. Apparently, the umpire believed it was used as a celebration prop.
East Carolina would go on to lose the game 12-11 in extra innings. Pirate Radio noted that Grosz will be forced to miss Wednesday’s game against Cincinnati as East Carolina tries to avoid elimination.
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East Carolina logo on the backstop during a game between the Houston Cougars and the East Carolina Pirates at Lewis Field at Clark LeClair Stadium in Greenville, North Carolina, on April 29, 2018. (Greg Thompson/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
Grosz is the No. 3 AAC prospect in the 2023 MLB Draft, according to Baseball America. He was 4-2 this season with a 3.49 ERA in 14 appearances. He had a career-high 74 strikeouts.
