Minor League Manager Hops Barrier, Leaves Stadium Through Fan Exit Following Ejection

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During a Saturday night contest between the West Michigan Whitecaps and the Lake County Captains, the home plate umpire ejected both managers. For the visiting Whitecaps, manager Brayan Peña decided to take an interesting route following his ejection.

Both teams compete in the Midwest league. That's one of Minor League Baseball's High-A leagues. The Whitecaps are an affiliate of the Detroit Tigers, while the Captains are an affiliate of the Cleveland Guardians.

Brayan Peña (right) was on the Detroit Tigers' roster prior to retiring in 2018 and beginning his minor league managerial career, which eventually led him to the West Michigan Whitecaps.

Brayan Peña (right) was on the Detroit Tigers' roster prior to retiring in 2018 and beginning his minor league managerial career, which eventually led him to the West Michigan Whitecaps. (Photo by Mark Cunningham/MLB Photos via Getty Images)

These two teams were in the midst of a six-game series that began on Tuesday. Wednesday's contest was rained out, forcing the teams to make it up as part of a Saturday double header. Lake County hosted the entire series from their home park in Eastlake, Ohio.

And apparently, after playing a game in the afternoon, the umpires and managers really wanted to go home. The Captains won the early game, 5-3.

But in the second game, all hell broke lose. The Lake County manager, Omir Santos, was the first to get tossed.

Later, despite his team leading, Whitecaps manager Brayan Peña had seen enough. Following a questionable strike call on one of his hitters, Peña came flying out of the dugout.

He yelled at the umpire for a bit before leaving the field. But he didn't go back to his own dugout or clubhouse. No, instead he hopped the barrier to the stands and literally left the park through a fan exit.

WATCH:

Brayan Peña has very funny response to being ejected in a Minor League Baseball game between the West Michigan Whitecaps and Lake County Captains

Talk about making a point. Again, the team's were in the midst of a doubleheader, so perhaps the umpire opened the strike zone a bit to keep things moving.

And maybe that provided an excuse for the managers to get a jump on the ride home or back to the hotel.

Brayan Peña played 12 years in the MLB for five different teams between 2005-2016. He was a career .259 hitter who began managing in 2018.

Following one-season stints in the lower-levels of the Tigers system, the team hired him as West Michigan Whitecaps manager prior to the 2020 season.

Hard to know if this hurts or helps his managerial career.

I say helps. Baseball needs more characters.

Brayan Peña is certainly a character.

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Dan began his sports media career at ESPN, where he survived for nearly a decade. Once the Stockholm Syndrome cleared, he made his way to OutKick. He is secure enough in his masculinity to admit he is a cat-enthusiast with three cats, one of which is named "Brady" because his wife wishes she were married to Tom instead of him.