Unfortunately, poor umpiring seems to be a concrete trend this season.
For umps hoping to fight off the seemingly-inevitable “robo-ump” wave that’s more than likely coming, they certainly aren’t doing themselves any favors.
The Philadelphia Phillies suffered a tough 3-0 loss to the Minnesota Twins on Sunday – marking their first series defeat in August.
The game, however, was marred by a series of questionable strike-three calls by home plate umpire Alex MacKay.
The pivotal moment arrived in the bottom of the seventh inning, with the bases loaded and two outs. MacKay’s call against Alec Bohm on a 3-2 pitch sparked an explosion of anger and frustration by Brohm.
"The pitch (to Alec Bohm), according to our box, was a hair in. Take a look, Statcast 3D."- Tom McCarthy
"A hair?"- John Kruk
"Well, I thought it was my hair. Maybe it's yours." McCarthy
"That (strike call is) terrible."- Kruk pic.twitter.com/Cd2rHjezJ9
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) August 13, 2023
Had the pitch been correctly called a ball four, it would have walked in a run and would have brought up star slugger Bryce Harper up with the bases loaded and only a one-run deficit.
In other words, the swing couldn’t possibly have been greater.
Bohm’s fiery reaction to the call led to his ejection, and he was replaced by Edmundo Sosa.
The Phillies frustration with MacKay’s continued into the eighth inning. Harper was called out looking at a third strike that appeared to be just off the plate, prompting a vehement response from Phillies manager Rob Thomson, who was subsequently ejected.
The Phillies/Twins game is heating up!
After Alec Bohm was ejected in the 7th, Phillies manager Rob Thomson has now been ejected in the 8th after Bryce Harper is called out looking at a 3rd strike just off the plate.#RingTheBell #MNTwins pic.twitter.com/sEkF9nTFbK
— Talkin' Twins ⚾️ (@TalkinTwins) August 13, 2023
Controversies have surrounded MacKay this season, with the UmpScorecard website revealing his accuracy and consistency rankings below league-average marks.
MacKay, a “call-up” umpire began the season in Triple-A. Sunday’s disaster was his 13th Major League game this season.
Brohm addressed the situation after the game, clearly expressing his frustration at the poor strike call and wondering “what could have been.”
“A lot more was riding on that call than just honoring the strike zone.. You’ve got Bryce Harper coming up with the bases loaded down one. So, as much as that affects the game, I guess we’ll never know what would have happened.”
Alec Bohm to @ACPressMcGarry on how much the seventh-inning call affected the game: “I mean, you’ve got Bryce Harper coming up with the bases loaded down one. So, as much as that affects the game, I guess we’ll never know what would have happened.” pic.twitter.com/rtiZksApjg
— Tim Kelly (@TimKellySports) August 13, 2023
What is the single worst call you’ve ever seen in baseball?