Padres center fielder Cameron Maybin walked despite only having three balls called on him during a 5th inning at-bat Saturday night, and he ended up scoring the game’s only run. True story.
Here’s how Maybin’s at-bat against pitcher Doug Fister went:
– First pitch: Called strike, 0-1
– Second pitch: Swinging strike, 0-2
– Third pitch: Foul ball, 0-2
– Fourth pitch: Ball, 1-2
– Fifth pitch: Foul ball, 1-2
– Sixth pitch: Ball, 2-2 (scoreboard jumps to 3-2 here)
– Seventh pitch: Ball, 3-2 (Maybin jogs to first base and nobody says anything)
Maybin says he got lost because of the foul balls, and he just followed the scoreboard after it said the count was full. Padres manager Bud Black seemed to have noticed but said “I wasn’t about to argue.”
Mariners manager Eric Wedge says he had the count right but after nobody reacted to the errant walk, he thought he was the one who missed a pitch.
Seattle’s catcher Josh Bard, and pitcher Doug Fister, should have been on alert and said something. They’re the pitcher and catcher — they should never lose the count, especially in such a tight game.
Needless to say, the umpire royally screwed up. It’s his responsibility to have the count straight. We understand that mistakes can be made every so often, but after we show you another high-profile mistake by home plate umpire Phil Cuzzi, you’ll wonder how he still has a job. Yup, Cuzzi is the same guy who screwed this up in the playoffs two years ago.
Feel free to launch the fire Phil Cuzzi chants now.
