The San Francisco Giants are upset over some strike calls made during an at-bat by Wilmer Flores in a 3-2 loss to the San Diego Padres on Friday night.
Flores was the second batter in the top of the ninth inning with his team down 3-2. Flores was facing Padres closer Mark Melancon, who struck him out on three straight cutters looking.
Take a look at the video:
This is one of the worst sequences I've seen.
Umpire Adam Hamari blew three consecutive strike calls to ring up Wilmer Flores in a high leverage situation. The pitches missed outside by 3.59 inches, 2.27 inches, and 3.23 inches.@SFGiants v @Padres https://t.co/iuYCrU10XW pic.twitter.com/bJVRE1SW4E
— Umpire Auditor (@UmpireAuditor) May 1, 2021
Flores never took the bat off his shoulder. The video and chart shows umpire Adam Hamari was giving Melancon a few inches off the outside corner.
Here are umpire Adam Hamari’s strike calls on Wilmer Flores in the ninth inning last night. “There was a high level of frustration,” said Gabe Kapler, adding he appreciates umpiring is a tough gig. But still. Will Giants check in with MLB? “There are talks about that right now.” pic.twitter.com/hxfao88WV1
— John Shea (@JohnSheaHey) May 1, 2021
The Giants went 1-2-3 in the ninth and lost.
Giants manager Gabe Kapler said Saturday they had a “high level of frustration” over the calls. The team is also considering talking with MLB about the calls.
The Giants may be upset, but there are a few things to be said. To start with, yes, Hamari was being generous, but those aren’t completely egregious calls. Secondly, after two cutters just off the outside corner were called strikes, Flores deserves the blame for not making an adjustment and realizing Hamari was giving Melancon the corner. That part is on Flores.
