In last night’s Tampa Bay – Texas matchup, the Rangers slipped past the Rays by a score of 5-4.
Nothing too interesting about that…two good clubs playing a close game.
However, the end of the game was marred by one of the worst calls you’ll ever see by an MLB umpire.
The Rays trailed 5-3 entering the top of the ninth, when Rangers closer Joe Nathan entered, looking for career save number 300. Nathan allowed two singles, and the Rays closed to 5-4 with two outs, a runner on first, and the dangerous Ben Zobrist coming to the plate.
Zobrist has been on fire to start the year, with 10 hits in 25 AB, including a homer, two doubles, and seven RBI. Nathan was understandably careful with the slugger, despite Evan Longoria looming on deck.
Zobrist worked the count to 3-2, and appeared to have drawn the walk as Nathan’s sixth offering floated low and away.
Home plate umpire Marty Foster, however, called the pitch a strike, and the game ended.
See for yourself (with reactions from several Rays and Rangers broadcast teams):
The fireworks make it even worse.
According to MLB.com’s GAMEDAY, not a single one of the pitches was actually a strike, though three were called.
The sixth pitch was obviously the most glaring error by Foster, who said after the game that “had I had a chance to do it again, I wouldn’t have called that pitch a strike.”
I’m all for anything that causes fellow American League East teams to lose ballgames, and it’s hilarious to me that it happened to O’s-killer Zobrist.
Still, as a baseball fan in general, you hate to see that – the human element of the game being so glaringly wrong.
It brings back memories of Mark Teixeira being called out at first to end that Birds-Yankees game last September…fond ones!
