Why did LSU’s Jared Jones get a warning for his home run celebration? Here’s the NCAA rule.

LSU freshman first baseman Jared Jones wasn’t happy when he stepped up to the plate to face to face Kentucky pitcher Austin Strickland in the bottom of the sixth inning on Saturday. 

Jones had blasted a home run off starter left-hander Tyler Bosma in the bottom of the second inning, then struck out looking in his second at-bat. And when he walked up to the plate against Strickland, he felt the pitcher speeding him up.

“I got in the box and the pitcher was already in mid-delivery, which (was) kind of frustrating,” Jones said after LSU’s 7-6 victory Saturday. “I know the pitch clock is obviously something new to baseball … so I just asked him (the umpire) if he could give me time to get set in the box.”

Jones ended up taking the third pitch out of the yard. The home run to left-center broke a 3-3 tie in the bottom of the sixth inning, giving LSU a 4-3 lead. Jones flipped his bat and unleashed some choice words toward the pitcher, which were caught on camera for viewers to see. 

Bat flips near or toward an opponent or umpire were added to the list of unsportsmanlike conduct behaviors of the NCAA’s 2023-2024 Baseball Rules Book ahead of this season (the list is on pages 56-57, Section 17). Also on that list is negative comments direct at an opponent, umpire or spectator, bench jockeying and the use of props or signs directed at an opponent or umpiring decision.

When a player displays one of these behaviors, umpires “shall warn the offending individual and the coach one time. If the unsportsmanlike conduct continues after the warning, the offender shall be ejected. If the unsportsmanlike conduct continues after the first ejection, the head coach shall be ejected along with any other offending personnel.” 

(The use of celebratory props outside of the dugout were also banned ahead of this season, which is why LSU no longer sports the boombox it had last year.)

Jones was pulled aside by the umpire afterward and given a warning. 

“I just got caught up in the heat of the moment,” Jones said. “He (the umpire) just said that with the new rules, they give out warnings about bat flips and stuff — that’s something that’s part of his job now, so he said, ‘It’s a big moment, I understand it completely, just trying to do my job.’ I just thanked him for doing that and totally understood.”