The San Diego Padres went ballistic on the umpiring crew following the team’s season-ending loss to the Chicago Cubs on Thursday.
The Cubs beat the Padres 3-1 in the deciding Game 3 of the NL Wild Card Series between the two teams at Wrigley Field in Chicago, Ill. San Diego was trailing 3-0 heading into the ninth inning but got a leadoff solo home run from outfielder Jackson Merrill to cut the deficit to two runs. Shortstop Xander Bogaerts then came to the plate and worked a 3-2 count.
Bogaerts appeared to draw a walk, but home plate DJ Reyburn called him out on a pitch that was well outside the zone. Bogaerts immediately began yelling at Reyburn, and Padres manager Mike Shildt came out of the dugout to make his feelings known as well.
Cubs reliever Brad Keller hit the next two batters before being pulled. Had the pitch to Bogaerts been properly called a ball, the Padres could have had the bases loaded with nobody out. Keller was then pulled in favor of Andrew Kittredge, who produced a ground out and a fly out to end the game.
The umpires had to walk through the Padres’ dugout to get to the clubhouse after the game. Players and coaches were there waiting to unload on Reyburn. Several members of San Diego’s team could be heard screaming and cursing at Reyburn while other umpires tried to hold them back.
You can see the video here.
The Padres’ bats were silent for the entire game, so one bad call did not decide their season. Still, many viewed the call as further evidence that MLB’s automatic ball-strike challenge system (ABS) is needed. The system has been used in the minors for several years and was tested at the All-Star game this year. ABS will be implemented in MLB games beginning next season.
