Let’s see if the New York Yankees’ resilience can continue for a sixth straight night. We’d like to think so, but Nestor Cortes getting off to another rough start in the first inning isn’t going to help. The Yanks went down 3-0 in a flash on Tuesday night.
As for the offense? The bats are having a tough time with Arizona Diamondbacks ace Zac Gallen, and they’re also not getting any help from the umpires. It’s not like what has happened so far would’ve changed the outcome of the game, but it’s just nice when your star player doesn’t have to deal with this type of oversight.
For those of you who guessed correctly, yes, it was Aaron Judge! The 6-foot-7 monster who has been getting low strikes called on him since 2017. MLB umpires still haven’t figured out how to avoid these instances as much as Yankees fans would like them to.
Some are tougher than others. Judge is a big guy. Pitchers are hurling the ball at high velocities. Catchers are trained to deceive the umps with framing. It’s not an easy job.
But this? This should be easy. This should be part of the Umpire 101 course that even the stoners can pass first semester.
That wasn’t even a breaking ball! There was no deception with the pitch crossing the plate at a tough angle! Gallen straight up fired away a 94 MPH fastball that was far below the bottom of the zone, which is even lower for someone of Judge’s stature.
Home plate umpire Scott Barry disagreed, though. Judge let him hear it, which is uncharacteristic for the collected superstar. He rarely argues balls and strikes. He just moves on to the next at-bat and gets his redemption.
So if Judge isn’t getting ejected or at least causing a stir about this call, then we’re not sure we’ll ever see him lose his cool on live television.
Robot umps are on the way, and Yankees fans are ready to dispatch of the human versions as soon as possible. They’ve felt just as victimized as Judge, having to watch it and see the unfairness for themselves.
Judge has been struggling mightily to start the season. It could be because he’s still banged up. It could just be getting back into the swing of things. Well, some of the umps are right there with him, too, but their performances are directly impacting his.
