MLB Umpires || Tribute to Angel?

Edition #88

INTRO:

Just sometime back, we got news that Angel Hernandez, the league’s worst umpire (according to players), retired. To us, that sounds like good news. In fact, it’s really good news. To the MLB, this is one of the worst things to ever happen as they “considered” Angel Hernandez as one of the best umpires. Crazy.

The day before Angel Hernandez retired, I was watching a video by Baseball Doesn’t Exist. His videos dive into interesting topics and are definitely a must-watch. (They’re fake sometimes… You just have to know). He was talking about how the MLB grades its umpires and also about where the MLB ranks Angel Hernandez with everyone else.

Let’s not only look into this special Angel Hernandez case, but also just umpires. Becoming an umpire means sacrificing a lot of your free time, plus basically working multiple jobs daily when umpiring in the minor leagues.

Umpires

“He’s been such a topic around the league, players, coaches, managers, fans,” Tigers manager A.J. Hinch said Tuesday. “I think on a day like today we should just thank him for his time in the game. … He’s one of the characters in the game that everybody has a story about, whether it’s an interaction on the field, as a manager we argue with him all the time. Players, there’s a bunch of banter that goes back and forth.”

"Starting with my first Major League game in 1991, I have had the very good experience of living out my childhood dream of umpiring in the major leagues," Hernandez's statement read. "There is nothing better than working at a profession that you enjoy. I treasured the camaraderie of my colleagues and the friendships I have made along the way, including our locker room attendants in all the various cities.

"I have decided that I want to spend more time with my family. Needless to say, there have been many positive changes in the game of baseball since I first entered the profession. This includes the expansion and promotion of minorities. I am proud that I was able to be an active participant in that goal while being a Major League umpire."

Angel Hernandez

Looking into his umpire stats this year, while he may be on the 3rd page on umpscorecards.com rankings, he’s not dead last. He’s not the worst umpire in baseball.

I’m not trying to defend him. I know the stupid and controversial strike calls he made. I mean, the dude has called a pitch that is 6.78 inches off the plate! But, if you’re a baseball stathead (and don’t watch the games), you have evidence. Not enough evidence. But, evidence that he makes good calls…

In fact, the worst umpire in the MLB is Manny Gonzalez and his accuracy is 91.6%! MLB umpires are accurate over 90% of the time. That can’t be possible!

Fine. Enough with the stats. Here’s why I think that Angel Hernandez shouldn’t be accused as much as he is. There is an umpire that has screamed at an injured player to get off the field. An umpire that ejected a manager because he “said” something EVEN THOUGH IT WAS A FAN.

One of the best umpires who was in the league was Pat Hoberg. What he did was just unimaginable and so wow-worthy.

He called a perfect game.

No, I don’t mean he umpired a game where a pitcher threw a perfect game. I mean that he called EVERY SINGLE PITCH correct. If it scraped the zone, it’s a strike. If it was 0.000000000001 off the zone, it’s a ball. And better yet, he did it in the World Series. Wow.

And even then, Alex Cora started complaining that Hoberg was terrible. Cora then started kicking the dirt on the right side of the plate (for umpire) and said something about it being a strike. That led to an ejection. Obviously.

Being an umpire really is one of the toughest jobs there are.

Hoberg was an amazing example. Even though he called every single pitch in that game CORRECT, you still have people telling you that you're terrible. You have diehard fans that’ll blame you for the loss. You have players who just hate you. And, if a manager gets ejected, that’s it.

It’s not even about being hated. Most people work their job just to earn money. Even with all the benefits companies can offer, not many are very interested in trying something new or going to a new field. They just stick where they are, make the same money they’re earning now, and continue with life. THIS MAY NOT BE YOU.

Did you ever know that there is a higher chance to become an MLB player then to become an MLB umpire?

Here’s the path.

First, you have to go to umpire school. To move on to the next level (rookie ball), you have to be in the top of your umpiring class. Next, you’re at rookie ball. If you do a better job than all the other umpires in rookie ball in accuracy, you get promoted to Low A. Before we go any further, do you know how hard it is to do this?

After Low A, it’s the same thing. You have to have to be one of the best in accuracy, and you go to High A. Then to Double-A all the way up to the major leagues. And, the worst part is. If you don’t do good for 3 years straight, you’ll be forced to retire or start over.

Another thing about this is that only 1 out of 150 umpires who attend that umpire camp actually make the MLB. Plus, it takes 10+ years of work and you start by earning 10K to 17.5K in a year down in the minors. That sucks and that means that by going through this whole thing, you need to be certain you can even get there.

Look. I’m not writing a persuasive essay here, but I just want to say that the next time you gossip about a bad MLB umpire, think about it. After all, you’re probably been working in a company with a stable pay. These people can’t be “regular”. It’s top 10 or nothing.

Let’s get to Angel Hernandez now.

Incidents. That’s why Angel Hernandez is the worst umpire.

If you say that Angel Hernandez is the worst umpire, I will agree with you. But, if you say he was the worst umpire from 2021-2024. I would disagree. You see, Angel’s past is rich with the worst tales. Imagine if someone in the crowd, particularly a famous person, calls you out by saying, “Don’t worry, I’ll talk to that home plate umpire after the game.” What would you do?

Angel Hernandez just stared him down. Yeah, he made a bad call, but saying that? I feel really bad for the dude. Even then, the public still didn’t know him. The players hated him, but he wasn’t hated by everyone. Until 2013, when one play… changed his life forever.

It was the A’s vs the Indians. Adam Rosales hit a home run. It was a home run for sure, but for some reason they ruled it a double. The A’s challenged. Angel Hernandez went in to review. He came back out and he said it was a double. What a mistake.

Oh and the guy missed a safe call as a first base umpire 4 times! The teams literally challenged the out call and got it overturned 4 times in the playoffs!

Then, just because he didn’t get to umpire the playoffs, he sued the MLB for racial allegations? Just too much drama.

You still got to feel pity for this guy. Even with all the bad calls he made, he’s still human. Hate him all you want, but give him credit. Thank him for his time in the game like A.J. Hinch said.

CONCLUSION:

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See ya later

-Smayan