Umpires - S/D

http://sanfrancisco.giants.mlb.com/images/2004/04/17/zQdAYJ8N.jpg

You could even hear him doing it when you listened to radio broadcasts of the games he was calling.

Destroy - Angel Hernandez

I've heard Gary Darling needs to be destroyed but I only saw the one game this year where he got into it with the 'Stros. I wouldn't search him out though.

Also destroy: any ump that walks towards a disgruntled pitcher and instigates an argument.

While you're at it, destroy the replacement ump who ruled that the ball nicked the helmet and not the bat from his position beyond second base.

Tony Randazzo is his name, according to ESPN. I don't recall seeing him before, but destroy!

here's another step, past QuesTec, w/ Zone Evaluation:

http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/blog/index?entryID=4034138&name=Neyer_Rob

via Neyer:

http://awfulumpiring.wordpress.com/

destroy all obvs.

I hadnt seen that Victorino ejection (in CF) til now

That Marlins/Astros play at the plate last night was really odd. Hermida very easily beaten by the throw, but Pudge stood over the plate with his glove up and his legs beside the plate (like he was too shocked about Hermida being sent to react normally). Hermida reached plate, tagged high, called out.

the marlins tv guys were musing that pudge was preparing himself for a collision since the ball beat hermida there by so many feet and that pudge was taken by surprise by the slide and reacted slowly

Jerry Crawford:

http://twitpic.com/dodfr

Situation: bases loaded, Red Sox leading 5-1 in the fifth.

Thanks, Jerry!

god joe west is awful

iyho do you think "bad calls" are increasing or merely a byproduct of broadcast/web technology improvements?

I always say I like the human element in baseball, unless it negatively affects my team and then its some bullshit.

Posnanski called out the 'human element' garbage this weekend.

http://joeposnanski.com/JoeBlog/2009/10/10/replays-the-thing/

When I was a kid I read an autobiography by some umpire, but for the life of me I cannot remember his name. Even after pulling up a list of every MLB umpire during the last century, I cannot figure it out. He was an umpire during the 80s, and he was incredibly fat. But most umpires were incredibly fat back then. He was known as a "funny" umpire, and his book would be filed under humor. His book included many passages describing arguments with Earl Weaver et al., and how many times managers would storm out onto the field and scream stuff like "I agree with your call 100% I'm out here because I've gotta show my players and our fans that I care about this team and I want them to win! I don't mean to embarrass you, keep doing your job and I'll keep doing mine!", before storming back to the dugout.

Whoever you are, mystery funny umpire, you are searchable.

It's Ron Luciano.

he committed suicide.

Yeah, car/garage/CO poisoning IIRC.

I used to enjoy reading his books though.

Not trying to make light of a man's suicide here ... but in life, he was a funny guy, and umpires' memoirs are still undervalued quantities in the baseball lit market!

Durwood Merrill wrote a pretty good one, too.

"I never called a balk in my life. I didn't understand the rule." - Ron Luciano

Good lord. RIP, I had no idea.

Cuzzi had called it foul, negating a leadoff double, and he spent much of the next 24 hours trying to figure out what happened. Part of it, he thinks, was playing an unnatural position - baseball only uses umpires along the outfield foul lines in the postseason and for the All-Star Game.

"We're not used to playing that far down the line,” Cuzzi said. "The instant the ball is hit, we usually start running. I think I may have been looking too closely at it. I never had a feel for where the left fielder was on the play."

http://myespn.go.com/blogs/sweetspot/0-6-36/Chewing-on-Cuzzi-s-call.html

The location of the left fielder does not matter, dipshit.

Cuzzi had called it a strike, negating a leadoff walk, and he spent much of the next 24 hours trying to figure out what happened. Part of it, he thinks, was playing an unnatural position - a plate umpire isn't usually scratching his ass during the postseason or the All-Star Game.

"We're not used to standing that way behind the catcher," Cuzzi said. "The instant the ball is thrown, we usually start watching. I think I may have been looking too closely at it. I never had a feel for where the hitter was on the play."

if his glove is in fair territory when he (nearly?) touched the ball, it might

xp

That's true, although in this case, the ball, the fielder's body, the fielder's feet, and the fielder's glove were all in fair territory during the entire play.

but he was too close to notice.

So it didn't make any difference where the fielder was, i.e. the ball landed in fair territory, so it was fair, there's no other possibility.

I guess that umpires are trained to watch the fielder's glove and feet on a play like this, and if the ball isn't caught, only then they focus on where the ball is? For plays at first base, for example, umps aren't supposed to watch the ball, they're supposed to watch the bag and listen for the sound of the ball hitting the glove.

Otherwise, I have no clue what Cuzzi is talking about.

xpost

While federal laws prohibit Major League Baseball from discussing injuries of employees, FOXsports.com has learned that the sidelined umpires include crew chiefs John Hirschbeck (testicular cancer), Charlie Reliford (back), Jerry Crawford (back), Tim Welke (concussion), Ed Montague (concussion and neck), Gary Darling (ankle and foot) and Rick Reed (stroke).

Other umpires who are sidelined by injuries include Kerwin Danley (concussion), Alfonso Marquez (back), Brian Runge (details unknown), Bill Hohn (back) and Ed Hickok (concussion).

holy crap!

Concussions from foul tips??

From looking at replays the next day and smacking themselves in the head.

laz diaz is the worst

Sheehan on Aybar's neighborhood play:

"Ninety-nine times out of a hundred, maybe 995 out of a thousand, Cabrera is called out. Last night, Jerry Layne, at random, called him safe. He suspended the de facto rules in favor of the de jure ones in extra innings of a playoff game. It's good for baseball that the Yankees didn't score in the inning, leaving the call as an afterthought.

You cannot run the game a certain way 99 percent of the time, then randomly decide to make a by-the-book call in a high-leverage moment. It turns the game into a farce. We see this now and again, an umpire calling a runner safe, or denying a batter first base for not making an effort to get out of the way of a pitch, and it becomes a nightmare every time. If the umpires want to have a set of rules separate from the ones in the book, fine, but they can't go back and forth between the two at will."

(several BP commenters disagree)

Pretty sure the "problem" was that the umpire WAS going by the rules in the book, and according to the production team, Aybar had actually touched second on every other force at second prior to that.

Bill (New Mexico): What do you think of the MLB move to install "veteran" umpires in the World Series after all the umpiring screwups of the post season so far? Will it actually help? Color me skeptical.

Eric Seidman: A lot of these blown calls have been from veteran umpires. In my mind there is no solution other than a correction-based system. Either the umps need to correct each other or someone needs to be watching the game capable of making corrections. If official scorers are simply watching the game and making decisions why not something for umpires?

Long... but well-done:

http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=%2F20100606%2FSPORTS02%2F6060457%2F1318%2FHow-ump-went-from-Ohio-to-bigs-to-national-scrutiny&;template=fullarticle

(could be xposted tot he kisckass media thread?)

http://twitter.com/DSpxp/status/24543405780

ANAHEIM, Calif. -- New York Yankees catcher Russell Martin said plate umpire Laz Diaz decided on an unusual way to punish him for arguing balls and strikes.

Martin said Diaz wouldn't allow him to throw new baseballs back to his pitchers after fouls during New York's 6-5 win over the Los Angeles Angels on Wednesday night.

"Laz Diaz is a d---. Write it hard," Martin shouted as he came into the clubhouse.

Martin said the ball ban was put into effect after he and Diaz exchanged some words over strike calls early in the game.

"He said that it was a privilege that I had to earn, for me to throw the ball back," said the catcher, a seven-year veteran and three-time All Star. "That's never happened to me before. I even told him, because there's guys on base, I like to keep my arm loose. Nope. 'I'm not letting you throw the ball back.' That's pretty strange, to me. That's a good story, huh?"

Destroy all.

@Tom_Gage
"Umpire told Alex (Avila), he missed the 2-2 pitch," said #Tigers Leyland about two-out walk that led to Boston's tie-breaking run in 7th

OH, THANKS.

New York Yankees catcher Russell Martin said plate umpire Laz Diaz decided on an unusual way to punish him for arguing balls and strikes.

He forced him to watch an eight-hour Filipino movie about melancholy?

http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_satkzCjK2F4/SPrB_tlklzI/AAAAAAAABKQ/Du_tHNiQugc/s320/melancholia2.jpg

(Directed by Laz Diaz--I'm just kidding, I was intrigued by it until I had to leave a couple of hours in for reasons that had nothing to do with the film.)

Oops--the film's by Lav Diaz.

tbf, it was just the new baseballs, and some umps throw them themselves as a matter of course -- i mean if russell martin can't keep his arm loose throwing back every other pitch that isn't fouled off, then he's got some other issues

that said, i don't think we need umpires who are so obviously petty and passive aggressive

laz diaz is the worst

― no hongro (J0rdan S.), Saturday, October 17, 2009 2:00 PM (2 years ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

cb bucknor thinks that's a bad call

The third vacancy stems from the retirement of Crew Chief Tim McClelland, who served 32-plus years and more than 4,200 games, including 94 Postseason games, as a Major League Umpire. The Michigan native had the second-most Major League experience among the active staff, trailing only 37-year Umpire Joe West. The Michigan State University product worked four World Series (1993, 2000, 2002 and 2006) in his career along with nine League Championship Series, five Division Series and three All-Star Games (1986, 1998, 2003). McClelland was the home plate umpire for the “Pine Tar Game” between the Kansas City Royals and the New York Yankees at Yankee Stadium on July 24, 1983, as well as Game Seven of the 2003 American League Championship Series at Yankee Stadium. He also called balls and strikes in the perfect game by Yankees left-hander David Wells on May 17, 1998 in New York.

His night ended with Freeman standing along the first base line, the All-Star's hands on his head after he bounced his batting helmet off the ground. From across the diamond, third base umpire John Hirschbeck ejected him.

Freeman said afterward he told Hirschbeck the call wasn't right, but stressed he didn't make it personal.

"I was just walking toward first base and I just told him ... I didn't say 'You're bad,' I said 'That's bad' a few times and (Hirschbeck) started pointing at me," Freeman said. "I kind of looked in the dugout and I heard him say 'Shut your f'n mouth.' So that's when I kind of looked at him and just (waved him off). Once I raised my hands is when he kicked me out."

Freeman said he had never heard an umpire say anything like that to a play before and made a point to stress there were young fans in the crowd.

"There's some kids in the stands and that's just not nice what he said," Freeman said.

http://www.foxsports.com/south/story/three-cuts-emotions-run-high-as-atlanta-braves-jump-on-slumping-washington-nationals-042715

Hirschbeck looked like he was seriously spoiling for a fight last night. I was glad the cameras caught the "you shut your fuckin' mouth" part.

Mike Winters, framing critic

http://hardballtalk.nbcsports.com/2015/05/30/home-plate-umpire-mike-winters-criticized-a-j-ellis-framing-ability/

we needs robots

http://espn.go.com/blog/sweetspot/post/_/id/65689/are-you-ready-for-robot-umpires-in-the-world-series

https://twitter.com/sung_minkim/status/722061770844717056/photo/1

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/Cg-jz1tUcAAkYjk.jpg

i really wish they'd update that legend so that it clearly indicated which ones are called strikes and which are swinging strikes. i forget and have to look it up every single time

life is so hard

dale scott picking up right where barrett left off last night in colorado

The minimum monthly salary for rookie and short-season Class A umpires, which had started at $1,900 under the previous five-year agreement, will rise to $2,000 under the new deal and increase to as much as $2,300 for a fourth-year umpire.

For full-season Class A, the minimum rises from $2,000 to $2,100 and increases to $2,600 by a seventh season. At Double-A, the minimum goes up from $2,300 to $2,500 and rises to $3,100 by a ninth season. At Triple-A, it goes up from $2,600 to $2,900 and rises to $3,900 by a 14th season.

http://www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/18439218/minor-league-umpires-get-hotel-upgrade-family-leave-raises

only human

http://www.sbnation.com/lookit/2017/4/19/15355792/mets-umpire-stops-mid-game-smells-kc-barbecue-wrapper

possibly as entertaining: umps may give miked explanations of relay rulings

JOE WEST: THE ANGLE DIDN’T SHOW CONCLUSIVE EVIDENCE THAT ... LISTEN, SHUT UP. ALL OF YOU SHUT UP AND STOP BOOING. I SAW THE VIDEO, AND YOU DIDN’T, SO SHUT. UP. ALRIGHT ...

[points into the stands]

YOU’RE GONE.

[points into the stands]

OUTTA HERE.

[points into the stands]

I WILL FIND YOU AND BITE YOU.

http://www.sbnation.com/mlb/2017/4/18/15342348/umpires-microphones-video-review-instant-replay

lol

and yeah, that's a really dumb idea. and kind of a humiliating demotion for the umps as well. over a course of a few years they go from being the all-powerful arbitrators of justice to messengers for the decisions made by a mysterious replay room in nyc

hey rookie umpire kid, go out there and tell the notoriously friendly philadelphia crowd that a call is going against them and explain why in really boring, obvious ways

super - so they found another way to make them take up even more time.

my dream job is to be the guy who holds the bag for the umpire replay reviews:

https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/0e/Instantreplaymlb.jpg/280px-Instantreplaymlb.jpg

http://deadspin.com/wow-that-was-some-bizarre-umpiring-in-nats-braves-1794446772

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/C9vHo-IWsAEhS3P.jpg

Werth struck out without swinging at any of those.

i'm fine w/ calling pitchouts as strikes on Werth

So 2b Umpire Alan Porter just told Daniel Murphy "F-- you" when asked to shift in #nats game. @FightinHydrant and I are aghast. pic.twitter.com/jrd2QKPN6G

— Steve Weddle (@steveweddle) June 13, 2017

personally i'm cool with anyone saying fuck you to daniel murphy

Joe West umpired his 5000th game tonight, and weighed in on last year's election for metaphorical reasons.

http://deadspin.com/lets-check-in-with-umpire-joe-west-about-wikileaks-and-1796281278

joe west is the umpire america deserves

U have got to be kidding me https://t.co/VQJaeIfbaX

— Chipper Jones (@RealCJ10) July 4, 2017

Angel should learn to discriminate btwn balls and strikes

This is still my all time favorite WBC moment, courtesy of Angel Hernandez pic.twitter.com/QbIW2bpUDd

— Nutzo, the Clown (@azta110790) March 22, 2017

you can be bad at your job and still be discriminated against ; some of these complaints sound fairly valid

http://deadspin.com/veteran-mlb-umpire-sues-commissioners-office-for-racial-1796613520

yeah my first thought on this was "oh god why did it have to be angel hernandez of all people" but it's easier to swallow when the other guy is joe torre lol

kinda just seems like something joe would do, use his dumb bureaucratic post to shit on an ump he had a feud with a decade ago

https://www.si.com/mlb/2017/07/20/joe-west-umpire-major-league-baseball

Look: We know you’re getting paid $25 million a year, but before you step into the batter’s box and try to hammer a fastball, you’re damn well going to say hello to Joe West.

You have no choice. If you don’t greet him before your first plate appearance, West will hold up the game. He is the only umpire who does this, but so what? He is the only umpire who does a lot of things, like moonlight as a country-music singer, which has made him the only umpire with three nicknames: Country Joe, Cowboy Joe and the Blue Cowboy. He has a website, umpirejoewest.com, where he sells umpiring equipment, including a chest protector he invented, the WestVest. There is a reason Royals reliever Peter Moylan splits the umpiring profession into two groups: “There’s umpires, and there’s Joe West.”

Other umpires work games; West controls them. He is the only umpire who stands between managers and other umpires on his crew, effectively ending arguments before they begin. Arguing with West directly is just as futile. When Ron Gardenhire managed the Twins, he went to dispute a call, and West warned him, “Don’t step in my dirt.” He meant the dirt around home plate. Gardenhire put one foot on it and was ejected before he opened his mouth.

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/DFwrgUWV0AI2J-z.jpg

is this a Joe West incident?

Will Little just threw a pitcher and catcher out of game on the same close pitch. Embarrassing. Bring on robot umps. pic.twitter.com/tnajBzV0Nu

— Alex Pavlovic (@PavlovicNBCS) July 27, 2017

i'm still mad at whoever tossed adrian beltre for moving the on-deck circle

imagine

http://mlb.nbcsports.com/2017/08/08/report-umpire-joe-west-suspended-three-games-for-bashing-adrian-beltre-publicly/

what the hell, that's totally undeserved

the suspension that is, not the comments on Beltre. dude is a whiner.

though I do support him getting a 3-game suspension just for being a dick in general

rare angel hernandez footage

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tfqq48OEDdo

Kinsler was asked if he was surprised how quickly he was ejected: "No, I'm surprised at how bad of an umpire he is." Angel Hernandez

— Chris McCosky (@cmccosky) August 15, 2017

Kinsler on Angel Hernandez: "He needs to re-evaluate his career choice. He really does."

— Chris McCosky (@cmccosky) August 15, 2017

Kinsler asked if he wanted that on the record: "Yeah. If I get fined for saying the truth, so be it."

— Chris McCosky (@cmccosky) August 15, 2017

Fair amount more here. Uh...WOW.

http://www.detroitnews.com/story/sports/mlb/tigers/2017/08/15/kinsler-angel-hernandez-hes-messing-baseball-games-blatantly/104635246/

Ian Kinsler!!!

— Rick Sutcliffe (@Sut_ESPN) August 15, 2017

Angel Hernandez went up to Kinsler and shook his hand. Kinsler did not seem comfortable with it. But shook with him anyway

— Chris McCosky (@cmccosky) August 17, 2017

Some umpires across Major League Baseball wore white wristbands Saturday, a show of solidarity after Detroit Tigers second baseman Ian Kinsler was fined -- and not suspended -- for harsh criticism of Angel Hernandez earlier this week.

"This week, a player publicly and harshly impugned the character and integrity of Angel Hernandez -- a veteran umpire who has dedicated his career to baseball and the community," the World Umpires Association (WUA) said in a statement. "The verbal attack on Angel denigrated the entire MLB umpiring staff and is unacceptable."

Kinsler, speaking after the Tigers' 3-0 loss to the Dodgers in Detroit on Saturday, said he didn't care much at all about the umpires' protest.

Ian Kinsler did not disclose the amount of the fine, but did note that he had no regrets for what he said about umpire Angel Hernandez.

"I really don't think too deeply into it. I hope they wear the white wristbands for the rest of their careers. I don't care. I said what I felt and what I thought. If they take offense to that, that's their problem.''

http://www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/20389152/umpires-ban-together-ian-kinsler-criticism-angel-hernandez

At first, Tigers manager Brad Ausmus said he didn’t care if the umpire’s union was staging a protest against what they consider a lack of support from Major League Baseball.

“I couldn’t be less concerned,” he said. “I don’t even care.”

But then he looked deeper into the content of the umpire’s protest, particularly the part where Ian Kinsler’s rant against umpire Angel Hernandez earlier this week was at the center of it, and that the umpires thought Kinsler’s fine with no suspension was too lenient.

At that point, he called reporters back into his office and was much more fired up, calling the union’s action “petty.”

“To single out one player is completely wrong and goes against what the sport is,” Ausmus said. “It's a team sport. There are often arguments between players and umpires, managers and umpires, coaches and umpires, and it's part of the game. To single out one player as a union is completely uncalled for.

“I've been a part of many arguments, and there are many things said both ways, player to umpire and umpire to player.

"To act like anyone's innocent in a particular argument is not only unfounded, it's a lie.”

http://www.detroitnews.com/story/sports/mlb/tigers/2017/08/19/ump-union-blasts-mlb-kinslers-lenient-punishment/104756494/

kinsler, hernandez,, MLB, the union, and ausmus are all wrong

None of the umpires at Comerica Park are wearing white armbands as Justin Verlander makes his first pitches to Curtis Granderson.

— Jason Beck (@beckjason) August 20, 2017

yikes

https://www.sbnation.com/mlb/2017/8/21/16181980/home-plate-umpire-hit-by-pitch-head-leaves-game-red-sox-indians

lol timing

http://www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/20421613/mlb-commissioner-rob-manfred-says-computer-umpires-available-sooner-later

I wonder who they hire to play the game at Umpire School so the students can practice.

good question!

maybe ask here https://twitter.com/HWumpireschool

Ah, college and high school teams, according to their website. So, unpaid labor.

https://www.fangraphs.com/blogs/incredulous-responses-to-bill-millers-strike-zone

damn i know it was bad but wtf why even have a strike zone ffs

imagine what the score would've been if he called those all correctly as balls

shit is pure vertiginous

Dale Scott has retired after 4 concussions in 5 years.

https://www.sfgate.com/news/article/MLB-ump-Dale-Scott-retires-rather-than-risk-more-12423444.php

Ex-MLB umpire Dale Scott downloads on 32 seasons behind the plate... and why Roger Clemens and Barry Bonds are HOF’ers https://t.co/XIKiKTtyaT

— John Canzano (@johncanzanobft) January 3, 2018

this is pretty good (plus dale scott was a top-40 dj in the late seventies and has the radio voice to prove it)

uploads, canzano, uploads! and even that is sort of wrong.

Michael Fulmer, after reviewing the video, told home plate ump Pat Hoberg that there were 10 pitches in the strike zone that he called a ball. Said Hoberg apologized. Fulmer said it was the worst strike zone he'd ever seen

— Chris McCosky (@cmccosky) July 14, 2018

Sensitive umpire Laz Diaz turns baseball game into extended temper tantrum: https://t.co/cJpIGFgA71 pic.twitter.com/25SsdJrxGg

— Deadspin (@Deadspin) September 15, 2018

i'm surprised umps don't lose their cool like that more often, tbh

@Buster_ESPN
Didi Gregorius was safe; for a third time tonight, Angel Hernandez will have a call overturned.

wow, who could have guessed

he's fucking suing mlb?!

no idea who these people are, but

MLB's senior umpire, ALCS Crew Chief Joe West, fell one pitch shy of perfection in Game 3, correctly judging 159 of 160 callable pitches for a plate accuracy score of 99.4% as Boston's Red Sox defeated Houston's Astros. West's score sets a UEFL record, as this is the first time our system has ever tracked an umpire missing just one pitch during a postseason game.

https://www.closecallsports.com/2018/10/joe-west-sets-record-in-near-perfect.html?m=1

joe west is apparently joe westing

joe west in the field
west in the field
west in the field
west in the field
ong gone, long gone, long gone, long gone
joe west in the field

I get that Tanaka missed his spot and Sanchez didn’t do a great job framing this, but when the result is a ball right down the middle... https://t.co/7v4rRiiWrr

— Jon Tayler, Smiling Politely (@JATayler) June 5, 2019

gotta love this guy

Officiating is incompetent in all sports. Either he had something in his eyes or he has money on the outcome

— And with the 15th pick the Habs select... (@CJ_Casselman) June 5, 2019

when i think back to my childhood in the 70s and 80s it's stunning how much better umps are at calling balls and strikes now. you used to have umps who'd have "their zone", often low and an extra inch or two off the outside edge. pitchers would be rotated specifically for particular umps. just ridiculous.

another big difference from the baseball of my childhood, which i guess tangentially relates to umpiring, is how pretty much any contact of any kind - bat, dirt, plate - results in the catcher grabbing a fresh ball from the umpire. the decadence! the daintiness! where do all those barely-used balls go???

just realized there's probably a long read or five answering that last question

They are all sold for money duh

they're sent to Nigeria to be recycled, but instead get incinerated.

electronic balls/strikes officially starts tonight in the atlantic league: https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/2019/07/10/baseballs-robot-umpires-are-here-you-might-not-even-notice-difference/?utm_term=.22147a3229e8

stealing first!!!??

i don't condone this, but it's definitely funny

the umps really hate that banging on the dugout roof thing gardner does

It doesn't get worse than this.

Umpire Joe West blew 16 calls on the night, but none were worse or more significant than this one to Brett Gardner. It missed the zone by 5.23 inches. #Yankees v #BlueJays pic.twitter.com/lJfMyKh4is

— Umpire Auditor (@UmpireAuditor) September 21, 2019

joe west in the field

HEATED IN THE BRONX!

Yankees Manager Aaron Boone has been EJECTED from today's game for arguing balls and strikes with umpire Joe West.#YANKSonYES pic.twitter.com/UekksepE2U

— YES Network (@YESNetwork) September 21, 2019

Michael Kay mentioned today that West's first ejections were Steve Henderson and Joe Torre (1977).

Jeff Passan, CC Sabathia, Jessica Mendoza: bring on the robots

https://www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/27947161/how-one-blown-strike-call-game-5-illustrates-mlb-need-robot-umps

New for the 2020 MLB season: Much like NFL referees have done for years, umpires will be mic’d up and tell fans in attendance and those watching on television and listening on radio if reviewed calls are upheld or overturned. They may also explain rules, if necessary.

— Pedro Gomez (@pedrogomezESPN) January 27, 2020

"that call i just obviously fucked up is not reviewable. please stop throwing beer bottles at me"

that took long enough

crew chief gary cederstrom has retired after 31 years

nic lentz has been hired full-time; you may remember him as the subject of aaron boone's 'savages' rant last year

kerwin danley is the first african american crew chief

For you umpiring nerds:

Ryan Blakney, Ramon De Jesus, Nic Lentz, Chris Segal and Jansen Visconti are now full-time umpires.

Gary Cederstrom, Dana DeMuth, Mike Everitt and Jeff Kellogg are retiring.

Kerwin Danley, Dan Iassogna, Alfonso Marquez and Jim Reynolds are crew chiefs.

— Jared Diamond (@jareddiamond) February 27, 2020

Pitch framing in 1884: pic.twitter.com/aBmr3bJ9AQ

— David Schoenfield (@dschoenfield) April 10, 2020

MLB considers Joe West a high-risk individual. He plans to return for this season despite that.

"I don’t believe in my heart that all these deaths have been from the coronavirus." https://t.co/PuWfDq1OQC

— Lindsey Adler (@lindseyadler) July 7, 2020

man joe west, fuck you

as always, he's the star

MAS QUE UN CLUB

MAS QUE BEISBOL

I just read that piece.

Fuck Joe West. Fucking waddling, ignorant Florida man.

wut pic.twitter.com/fZ1xGZeKQm

— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) August 22, 2020

what is happening

E1 🚨 🚨 🚨

Most bizarre “error” of the year pic.twitter.com/oFB81HNMkl

— MLB Errors (@mlberrors) April 28, 2021

ANDREW MCCUTCHEN WAS RULED OUT OF THE BASE PATH ON THIS WHAT ARE THE UMPS WATCHING??? pic.twitter.com/YdM1FuS4L9

— Ben Porter (@Ben13Porter) May 2, 2021

lol yankees

Full count, two outs, bottom of the 9th, winning run on third, and umpire Gabe Morales blows a huge call to send the game to extras.

This called strikeout to Rougned Odor missed outside by 4.55 inches.

The Yankees lost in extra innings.#Yankees #RedSox pic.twitter.com/8sj43qLBiw

— Umpire Auditor (@UmpireAuditor) June 7, 2021

Umpire Angel Hernandez was the lowest rated umpire on the day, missing 19 calls for a correct percentage of 85.3%.

He rang up 6 batters on pitches that were outside the zone and called a strike to Jean Segura that missed inside by a season high 6.47 inches.#Brewers #Phillies pic.twitter.com/pmmt1ELJJ6

— Umpire Auditor (@UmpireAuditor) April 25, 2022

That Segura call, good god.

haven't they implemented the robo-strike zone in some minor leagues? i'm curious about what it tends to do to league-wide offense, both in the short term (first few weeks as everyone adjusts) and more long term

also, as i think mookie and others have pointed out, what it does with the value of catchers, particularly those who specialize in pitch-framing

i knew exactly what inspired this revive the second i saw it!

i don't particularly like bumgarner, but this is straight bullshit from dan bellino

The difference between MadBum's and Hernandez's hand checks is striking. pic.twitter.com/CRPOuRXBUE

— Bally Sports Arizona (@BALLYSPORTSAZ) May 4, 2022

Why would he even do that?!

hahahaha

He appreciated hands

He’s a hands on kind of ump

MadBum is great, he is just old school and has a temper. Ump is in the wrong here as he was baiting him.

really want the giants to break some unwritten rules next time he faces them. i don’t think he would like that very much!

bellino wasn't even the home-plate ump -- he was just fucking with MB and i kind of wish the latter had decked him

Full clip:

MadBum got ejected and lost it after words were exchanged with the ump following getting his hand checked 😳 pic.twitter.com/PZQuvUrYvk

— SF Giants on NBCS (@NBCSGiants) May 4, 2022

https://www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/33868753/umpire-dan-bellino-issues-apology-ejecting-arizona-diamondbacks-pitcher-madison-bumgarner-taking-full-accountability-decision

fUlL aCcOuNtAbIlItY

ridiculous

pic.twitter.com/JWIvC8ZdrB

— Welcome to the Ump Show (@umpjob) June 5, 2022

that was dumb af. i also loved Maldanado trying to cover Presley's mouth with his glove!

https://theathletic.com/3355774/2022/06/08/mlb-umpire-angel-hernandez-lawsuit/

seems like that thing where you're not supposed to ask a question of a witness you don't already know the answer to

lol MLB just buried angel hernandez

https://defector.com/mlb-court-filing-says-umpire-angel-hernandez-is-an-unaccountable-jerk ($)

https://www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/34497311/mlb-argues-umpire-angel-hernandez-3-overturned-calls-2018-alds-cost-world-series-spot (non-$)

https://www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/35341465/sources-10-mlb-umps-retiring-most-99

Angel Hernandez not on the list.

someone on reddit has realized Joe West was trying to edit his own wiki entry to get rid of any anything that made him look bad!

https://www.reddit.com/r/baseball/comments/10x5nzf/joe_west_is_spending_his_retirement_editing_his/

Lol - he just got banned from making edits. This is amazing

This is a tough scene pic.twitter.com/rQW7s7HtHd

— Jomboy Media (@JomboyMedia) March 11, 2023

Jesus. Is that enough to get an ump canned??

Nothing is

The Southland Conference's statement on the New Orleans and Mississippi Valley State Baseball contest on March 10. pic.twitter.com/jZ5mFeRj6K

— Southland Conference (@SouthlandSports) March 11, 2023

Homeplate umpire Randy Rosenberg ejects JT Realmuto for this 🤨 pic.twitter.com/dkQtpU1bHt

— Tim and Friends (@timandfriends) March 27, 2023

Beware, Catchers: The Robots Are Coming

Once an obscure art, pitch framing has become an essential MLB skill. But with robo umps seemingly destined for the big leagues, it is suddenly endangered.

the jomboy breakdown of this is essential. he really is excellent at reading lips

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ab8_xERdUa4

tbf getting thrown out of an exhibition game -- especially for a catcher -- is absolutely a bonus. save your knees for something that counts

This is one of the worst calls I've ever witnessed. Thankfully, it was overturned. #LGM pic.twitter.com/Po7x6k5zMs

— GENY Mets Report (@genymets) April 5, 2023

i mean it looks like he simply didn't turn fast enough to see where it landed but that seems like when you go with a default fair call and then call it back if it was foul, not the other way around

Be careful when you applaud because it may get you ejected.pic.twitter.com/yBbaxVZcZo

— Codify (@CodifyBaseball) May 13, 2023

Obsessed with this. 34% of called strikes were balls!

Umpire: Laz Diaz
Final: Yankees 1, White Sox 5#RepBX // #WhiteSox#NYYvsCWS // #CWSvsNYY

More stats for this game 👇https://t.co/7VIQZpnDj3 pic.twitter.com/VVQPo0vHIs

— Umpire Scorecards (@UmpScorecards) August 8, 2023

Umpire Laz Diaz missed 21 calls in the #Yankees #WhiteSox game and 14 went against the Yankees.

He had a lower correct call rate than Angel Hernandez did on Sunday.

After 8 innings of bad calls, Aaron Boone exploded, was ejected, and gave his best Laz Diaz impression. pic.twitter.com/VdKAuqZzgO

— Umpire Auditor (@UmpireAuditor) August 8, 2023

sycophant john kay refusing to question any of those, classic

https://twitter.com/umpjob/status/177703412546497754

The ball is three inches high, the pitcher stepped off the rubber right before the pitch

Angel Hernandez: "Strike three!" pic.twitter.com/FtFHaLYKQY

— Welcome to the Ump Show (@umpjob) April 7, 2024

I've seen more horrific ball/strike calling this year already than I saw all of last year

Umpire Brennan Miller missed 10 calls in the first 4 innings and 9 went against the Twins.

He then called two more bad strikes to ring up Matt Wallner and ejected the hitting coach for complaining.

Miller missed 22 calls in the game and 17 went against the Twins. pic.twitter.com/sk6dhCueAF

— Umpire Auditor (@UmpireAuditor) April 7, 2024

Nobody does it better

Umpire: Angel Hernandez
Final: Rangers 12, Astros 8#StraightUpTX // #Relentless#TEXvsHOU // #HOUvsTEX

More stats for this game 👇https://t.co/RJKSQogI6y pic.twitter.com/uRM1ykGr3R

— Umpire Scorecards (@UmpScorecards) April 13, 2024

curious about how this CWS-CIN ump gets rated, he was in a different universe in the top of the 2nd.

from that ^^^ angel game:

** NEW UMPIRE AUDITOR RECORD **

Umpire Angel Hernandez rang up Wyatt Langford on three consecutive pitches out of the zone.

The strikeout pitch missed outside by 6.78 inches.

This was the largest miss on a called strikeout in Umpire Auditor history. pic.twitter.com/BWmizkDsmD

— Umpire Auditor (@UmpireAuditor) April 13, 2024

hunter wendelstadt put on a real show in the bronx today

https://www.mlb.com/news/aaron-boone-ejected-in-first-inning-of-yankees-game-against-a-s

Hunter Wendelstedt showcasing some good old fashioned umpire insecurity early in this game today. The broadcast was showing Boone live as the ejection happened - he was merely chewing some gum lol

Absolutely unreal quote

More Hunter Wendelstedt: "Apparently what he said was there was a fan right above the dugout. This isn’t my first ejection. In the entirety of my career, I have never ejected a player or a manager for something a fan has said. I understand that’s going to be part of a story or…

— Bryan Hoch ⚾️ (@BryanHoch) April 22, 2024

More Hunter Wendelstedt: "Apparently what he said was there was a fan right above the dugout. This isn’t my first ejection. In the entirety of my career, I have never ejected a player or a manager for something a fan has said. I understand that’s going to be part of a story or something like that because that’s what Aaron was portraying. I heard something come from the far end of the dugout, had nothing to do with his area but he’s the manager of the Yankees. So he’s the one that had to go.”

Jomboy media broke this down: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ojqxAZuHrhM

Posnanski has a 10 Worst Strike Calls since 2018 rundown in today's (free) post:

https://open.substack.com/pub/joeposnanski/p/free-friday-going-to-the-dogs?r=1jtu0&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=email

You can also read about how lousy his fantasy team is (last place).

(Only one of the 10 calls is you-know-who.)

Awful.

"Let's go!" — Umpire Rob Drake hollering at injured Byron Buxton to hustle off the field pic.twitter.com/atFUnHFP8J

— The Twins Almanac (@TwinsAlmanac) May 1, 2024

his twitter seems chill, idk

“I will be buying an AR-15 tomorrow, because if you impeach MY PRESIDENT this way, YOU WILL HAVE ANOTHER CIVAL WAR!!! #MAGA2020”

(it's long deleted, but the articles mention "yeah, so it's THIS guy")

Aaron Civale War

this may or may not have been a strike, and yes 'you cannot argue balls and strikes' but ffs show a tiny bit of perspective before ejecting one of the biggest (and legendarily nicest) stars in the game *when he's walking away*

Aaron Judge gets ejected for the first time in his MLB career pic.twitter.com/2dzjp45kju

— Jomboy Media (@JomboyMedia) May 4, 2024

lmao this game was in a rain delay for hours in the bottom of the 10th with the bases loaded and two outs

I can't believe the White Sox/Cardinals game ended like this 🤦‍♂️

"Not even close."

"You've gotta be kidding me."pic.twitter.com/OoWXvh6NMA

— Baseball Legends (@Leg_baseball) May 5, 2024

Omg the umpire just wanted to go home

Umps straight up quiet quitting at this point:

https://streamable.com/m1zex4

hey look, maybe the ump was just a sympathetic guy and saw an aging reliever that could do with a handout after his recent (5 years) form

But on a more serious note:

What in the darn hell???

Famous pitchers and their favourite/least-favourite umpires:

https://open.substack.com/pub/joeposnanski/p/free-friday-umpire-state-of-mind?r=1jtu0&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=email

https://www.tiktok.com/@umpireauditor/video/7372843079381847339

bye bye https://sports.yahoo.com/reports-umpire-angel-hernandez-after-long-and-controversial-run-in-major-league-baseball-set-to-retire-014420551.html

Poor guy. (I laughed anyway.)

https://www.facebook.com/HoustonAstrosNation/posts/pfbid02rE1T71u8LubnUbBb75ihhfGr2HLG673jqJSmYpmfxdwU1P2jPMetyiKxXP794g2gl

Famous pitchers and their favourite/least-favourite umpires

that's a really nice tom glavine story