Atlanta ( CNN ) -- A controversial -- and potentially pivotal -- call in a one-game playoff Friday night between the Atlanta Braves and St. Louis Cardinals prompted a vehement argument by the Braves ' manager and fans to toss debris onto the field . The incident occurred in the eighth inning of the newly introduced wild card baseball postseason game , in which the two teams battled for the right to advance to a National League division series . At the time , St. Louis led Atlanta by a 6-3 score . With one out and runners on first and second base , Braves shortstop Andrelton Simmons skied a pop-up to shallow left field . Amid apparent confusion between two Cardinals ' players , the ball dropped -- which could have led to the Braves loading the bases . But instead , an umpire ruled Simmons out , citing the infield fly rule . The rule is traditionally invoked on pop flies in the infield , in order to prevent fielders from letting a ball drop -- in order to get two outs instead of one , had they caught the ball . SI : What is the infield fly rule ? Atlanta manager Fredi Gonzalez stormed out of the dugout to protest the call , while angry fans pelted the field with cups , bottles and other debris . After an 18-minute delay , play finally resumed -- with the umpires ruling the call still valid , and the Braves then playing the game under protest . Braves ' pinch-hitter Brian McCann then walked before the Cardinals ' Jason Motte struck out Michael Bourn to end the inning . After two quick outs in the ninth inning , Atlanta 's Chipper Jones -- the team 's legendary third baseman who has announced this is his last season -- got on base with an infield hit . Freddie Freeman then rocketed a ground rule double , bringing the tying run to the plate in the form of Dan Uggla . Yet the second baseman ended the game -- and the Braves ' season and , with it , Jones ' career -- by grounding out to second base . Matthew Bolus , a 19-year-old lifelong Braves fan who had driven all the way from Birmingham , Alabama , for the game , was among those fans who felt cheated by the call . `` I feel like I did n't see the game that I was supposed to see , '' he said . Atlanta fans responded to the final out with more boos , as well as a smattering of more debris flying onto the field . The disgust was interrupted only by a chant of `` Chipper , '' recognizing the end of the fan favorite Jones ' career . Chipper Jones ' last hurrah . Joe Torre , a former player and manager who is now Executive Vice President of Baseball Operations for Major League Baseball , told reporters later that he talked with umpire crew chief Jeff Kellogg during the long delay . After the game concluded , Torre talked to Gonzalez and Braves General Manager Frank Wren about their protest . During the regular season , teams have 24 hours to file a written protest , after which baseball executives can make a judgment . But Torre said that timetable `` just did n't make sense '' with the game 's victors advancing to the next round of the playoffs starting Sunday , so he decided the matter immediately . `` I spoke to them and asked them what ( grounds ) they were making the protest on , '' Torre said . `` And I ruled , basically , to disallow the protest based on the fact that it 's an umpire 's judgment call . '' When asked after the game if he doubted whether he made the right call after the boos and debris started raining down , umpire Sam Holbrook said succinctly , `` Absolutely not . '' With the 6-3 victory , St. Louis advances to play the National League East champion Washington Nationals in the next round of the playoffs . The San Francisco Giants face off against the Cincinnati Reds in the league 's other postseason series . Baseball season 's final day brings drama . Following the game , Gonzalez criticized what he deemed `` a bad call , '' saying the ball was too far out in the outfield to warrant the infield fly rule . Still , he said he was `` a little disappointed '' with fans who threw objects on the field and pointed out how the Braves ' three errors and inability to drive in more runs also contributed to the loss . `` Anybody can have one bad game , anybody can have one bad call go against you , '' the Atlanta manager said . `` It hurts losing ballgames like we did tonight . '' Torre acknowledged some may understandably disagree with the eighth-inning call . Yet he pointed out that mistakes -- including errors by fielders and strikeouts by hitters -- have been part of baseball for as long as the sport has been around . `` I think controversy is part of what we do , because the game is not perfect , '' Torre said . `` That 's always been the game . '' The American League one-game playoff match between the Baltimore Orioles and the Texas Rangers did not have the controversy or trash throwing . Baltimore won the game 5-1 , continuing the miracle season the team is having . The Orioles will move on to play the New York Yankees on Sunday . One-handed kid meets Chipper Jones . CNN 's Jamie Gumbrecht contributed to this report .
NEW : A baseball umpire disallows the Braves ' protest of the game , so the game stands . An umpire makes a controversial call against the Braves in the eighth inning . Atlanta 's fan protests and fan throw debris onto the field . The Braves end up beating the Braves 6 - 3 to advance in baseball 's playoffs .