Nothing like an umpire being in their feelings, totally getting a call wrong, and being captured in the act in broad-daylight 4K.
New York Yankees skipper Aaron Boone had himself a fine career as a player, and has had a lengthy tenure in the Bronx. He’s seen some sh*t. I doubt what happened to him in Monday’s game against the soon-not-to-be Oakland A’s was unprecedented in his wealth of experience.
You can see in the video below that a blue-shirted man in the bleachers clearly shouts something at the on-field blue, prompting the fella behind home plate to toss Boone. It didn’t matter that Boone was clearly in the right in arguing the call.
The umpire under the microscope here is Hunter Wendelstedt, who isn’t exactly having a banner day for himself at Yankee Stadium.
Oh my. Juuuuust a wee bit outside there, Hunter! Does this man cycle viciously between a superiority complex and imposter syndrome? Because that’s one possible explanation for why he’d chuck Boone off the premises despite how foolish he was to do so. Wendelstedt is the son of a late MLB umpire, and while Boone is the son of an ex-MLB player and manager, you can’t really hide on the field as a player. Nepotism isn’t really a thing at the highest level of sports. In fact, your pedigree/bloodlines tend to bode well for success.
When it comes to calling balls and strikes and having an ounce of common sense, well, Monday’s cutups alone present a case that Wendelstedt may or may not deserve to be in the high-status position he occupies.
Now look, I will say, everyone has a bad day at the office, right? But this is one of the most flat-out baffling things you’ll ever see on a baseball field in your lifetime. Can we get a closer glimpse at this? It couldn’t be more blatant.
Wendelstedt says, “I don’t care who said it, you’re gone.” Imagine being that much of a f*****g idiot.
To have such an ego to not even acknowledge reality takes a special kind of stupid and toxic self-love. Wendelstedt couldn’t have just swallowed his pride, gone to an instant replay with audio, and discovered in about five seconds that Boone didn’t say a damn thing to him? I guess that would still reflect poorly on him, but at least he’d be taking accountability and getting it right.
Nope! Instead, Boone is out for the day.
Brilliant job, Hunter Wendelstedt. At least for the Yankees’ sake, the A’s are the equivalent of a doormat on the diamond more often than not because they’re run by such a cheapskate owner. Losing Boone most likely won’t have any bearing on the Pinstripes’ ability to get a win in front of the home fans.
Regardless of how the game itself plays out, whoever, I doubt Wendelstedt will ever live this down. Can’t wait to see if he gets an interview afterwards, or if MLB umpires release a mea culpa statement. Can Wendelstedt get fined? Is that even possible? I’d hope so. Probs not. What a moron.
