What happened to Alec Burleson? Cardinals slugger ejected from game vs Cubs

St. Louis Cardinals slugger Alec Burleson was ejected from the game against the Chicago Cubs after grounding into a double play. The hit that precipitated the double play was the result of the umpire's glaring strike calls that forced him to swing on a bad pitch. So when he argued that point after being called out, he was promptly ejected.

This was a game-changing call as it was the Cardinals' best chance to take the lead at the end of the game. Because they were unable to do so, they ended up losing.

This ripple effect of poor officiating likely won't be remembered at the end of the season, but the loss will still stand. It is likely this injustice that made Alec Burleson lose his cool so quickly.

Katie Woo of The Athletic was the first to report on the ejection and the context around it:

"Alec Burleson had a 3-0 count with the bases loaded and the Cardinals down one. He realllly didn't like the next two strike calls from Ron Kulpa. He then grounded into an inning-ending double play. Burleson started screaming at Kulpa and was tossed immediately."

Burleson himself explained his thought process on the at-bat that ended with his ejection from the game:

"On 3-0, I thought it was borderline & I asked him if it was corner and he said ‘Yeah, that's the corner.’ To me, that means you're not going any more than that (outside) and then (strike 2). So, that forced me to swing 3-2."

The Cardinals lost their important game against the Cubs and have a fair few gripes about the result.

Alec Burleson could see a lot more playing time down the stretch

St. Louis Cardinals v Miami Marlins

The Cardinals have been one of the most surprisingly poorer teams in MLB this season so they need all the help they can get. This is only Burleson's second season in the big leagues, but his offensive consistency has been great for them.

This ejection against the Cubs isn't enough to stop him from seeing more and more playing time.