

David Ortiz is fed up.

Ortiz was ejected in the seventh inning of Saturday’s game against the Kansas City Royals at Kauffman Stadium after arguing with home plate umpire Bruce Dreckman about a couple of outside strike calls. The Boston Red Sox slugger remained heated after his team’s 7-4 loss, prompting him to go off about Major League Baseball’s expanding strike zone and the current state of umpiring.

“I mean, man, this (expletive) game has changed so much,” Ortiz told reporters in Kansas City. “Nothing is new to me, you know what I’m saying? This is like, I mean, everybody keeps saying, ‘He’s old, he’s this, he’s that, that’s why he doesn’t hit anymore.’ All of a sudden, I was being one of the best strike zone hitters to being one of the worst. So, from day to night, it doesn’t work that way.

“It feels like every time you go into the box, you have two strikes already. You can’t hit like that, period. You can’t hit like that. I’m facing a guy that’s throwing 100 mph, and you’re going to give him two pitches. How am I going to hit?”

Hard-throwing Royals reliever Kelvin Herrera jumped ahead of Ortiz, 1-2, in his seventh-inning at-bat. Ortiz, who had some words for Dreckman, then singled into center field on a pitch down and out of the strike zone, after which the nine-time All-Star flung his bat into fair territory, seemingly in disgust.

Dreckman shouted down to Ortiz after he reached first base. Ortiz dismissively waved off Dreckman, prompting the umpire to send Big Papi to the showers, much to his surprise.