Not a Good Day for Umpires

Yesterday was not a good day for baseball umpires, which could be a good thing. Umpires have been out of control the past couple of years. I remember a game a few years ago in Arizona when an umpire called Juan Uribe out on strike 3 to end the ball game, followed Uribe arguing with him, and then grabbed his crotch towards Uribe while exiting the field. It was an ugly moment and showed how out of control umpires in general are.

Umpires are out of control because they aren't punished. Their union protects these guys with an iron fist. Example: Will Bob Davidson be punished for his outburst yesterday towards Phillies manager Charlie Manuel? Probably not and that's sad because Davidson should be punished for being unprofessional.

That wasn't the only unprofessional moment of the day for the umpires. Bill Miller was the home plate ump yesterday and helmet toss victim in Toronto by Blue Jays third baseman Brett Lawrie.



Now take a look at the strike zone and see why Lawrie might be a little pissed.

You can see why Lawrie might be a little upset. Does that excuse him for throwing his helmet that hit Miller? Of course not, but you can at least understand why Lawrie was a little irritated. For Bill Miller's troubles he had a beer thrown on him.

Yesterday was not a good day for umpires but could potentially be a good day for the league. The umpires are out of control and no one has reigned them in. Hopefully this changes after yesterday. You can't have umpires yelling expletives at Charlie Manuel while he's walking off the field. You can't have an umpire calling as ridiculous strikes as Miller and not expect someone to be upset.

They especially can't get away with this crap in today's game because the fans/broadcasters/writers can see and hear everything. An umpire like Bill Miller can't get away with a shitty strike zone because we can clearly see that his strike zone was crap via help from Brooks Baseball. 

Hopefully yesterday serves as a wake up call to baseball and the umpires union. Will I hold my breathe that something will happen? No. But I do take pleasure in knowing the umpires are being exposed for their crappiness.