Umpire CB Bucknor’s terrible week culminated in him getting knocked out of Wednesday’s game by a foul ball.
Bucknor was the home plate umpire during Wednesday’s game between the Tampa Bay Rays and Milwaukee Brewers at American Family Field in Milwaukee, Wi. During the top of the second inning, he took a foul ball directly to the mask off the bat of Rays catcher Nick Fortes.
Bucknor dropped to a knee and was clearly a bit dazed. He left the field with assistance from the trainers.
CB Bucknor took a foul ball to the mask and was in visible pain.
— js9innings (@js9inningsmedia) April 1, 2026
He left today’s game as he may have a concussion. pic.twitter.com/YHuluPblER
Jacob Misiorowski’s pitch came in at 100 MPH even before the foul tip. It’s hardly surprising Bucknor was left reeling from that.
Bucknor has had a very rough first week of the MLB season. He was widely mocked for his performance in Cincinnati on Saturday, when he had six calls overturned by ABS review and could have had the same happen to at least a dozen more. On Tuesday, he produced a call that was so clearly wrong that both managers had to keep from laughing about it in their respective dugouts.
The 63-year-old Bucknor is one of MLB’s two longest-tenured umpires, having worked at the major league level since 1996.
