(Video from Jimmy Traina on Vine)
A Cleveland Indians baseball player was ejected after their game against the New York Yankees was over on Tuesday night.
Shortstop Mike Aviles made the last out for the Indians during their 4-3 loss to the Yankees at Yankee Stadium. During the first pitch of the at-bat, New York closer Mariano Rivera threw a high fastball that bounced off the mitt of catcher Chris Stewart.
Home plate umpire Tony Randazzo mistakenly thought the ball went off Aviles' bat and called a strike. Aviles protested the call to a minor degree after the pitch, and Cleveland manager Terry Francona came out of the dugout, but Aviles quickly refocused on his at-bat against Rivera.
After a second ball by Rivera that should've made the count 2-0 but instead made it 1-1, Aviles swung at Rivera's third offering and flied out to right field.
It was after the out in which Aviles came back to say something to Randazzo, who then issued the postgame ejection. Indians manager Terry Francona came out to protect Aviles and issue another protest, but Randazzo was heard shouting down Francona.
Deadspin.com profiled Randazzo in 2012, citing that the umpire first started in the big leagues in 1999. It included an excerpt from the book, "Major League Umpires' Performance 2007-2010" by Andy Goldblatt, in which he said:
"There's a considerable gap between what the data suggest about Randazzo and what players and managers say about him. The data suggest he has a very large strike zone tempered by a reluctance to call strike three and is more patient than the average umpire in arguments. Stories from players and managers suggest that Randazzo has a tight, sometimes arbitrary strike zone and an aggressive attitude."
The bad call is just the latest in a season seemingly full of umpire gaffes during the 2013 baseball season, the most notable a missed home run - even with replay - during an Oakland Athletics-Cleveland Indians game in May.
© Copyright 2024 Sports World News, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.