MLB Ejections 055-6 - Emil Jimenez (1, 2; CHC x2)

[Lindsay]

HP Umpire Emil Jimenez ejected Cubs DH Eric Hosmer and manager David Ross (strike three call; QOCY) in the top of the 8th inning of the #Cubs-#Twins game. With two out and the bases loaded, Hosmer took a 2-2 splitter from Twins pitcher Cole Sands for a called third strike. Replays indicate the pitch was located over the outer half of home plate and below the midpoint (px -0.37, pz 3.54 [sz_top 3.61 RAD 3.73]), the call was correct.* At the time of the ejections, the Twins were leading, 8-1. The Twins ultimately won the contest, 11-1.

These are Emil Jimenez (82)'s 1st and 2nd ejections of 2023.

*This pitch was located 2.28 vertical inches from being deemed incorrect.

These are the 55th and 56th ejection reports of the 2023 MLB regular season.

This is the 24th player ejection of 2023.

This is the 26th manager ejection of 2023. Ejection Tally: 26 Managers, 24 Players, 6 Coaches.

This is Chicago's 1/2nd ejection of 2023, T-3rd in the NL Central (STL 4; MIL 3; CHC, PIT 2; CIN 1).

This is Eric Hosmer's 1st ejection since June 29, 2021 (Hunter Wendelstedt; QOC = Y [Check Swing]).

This is David Ross' 1st ejection since July 23, 2022 (CB Bucknor; QOC = N [Balls/Strikes]).

This is Emil Jimenez's first career MLB ejection.

Wrap: Chicago Cubs vs Minnesota Twins (Game 1), 5/13/23 | Video as follows:

Alternate Link: Hosmer ejected after strike three call at top of the strike zone

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[The Man in Blue]

Good grief ... what is up with all the stupid non-sense self-removals?

[blue23ll]

Apparently you can't call the upper zone if you are calling the low strike? I must have missed that memo. 

And why do the managers always come out after an ejection? They aren't discussing a substitution. 

[SeeingEyeDog]

1 hour ago, blue23ll said:

Apparently you can't call the upper zone if you are calling the low strike? I must have missed that memo. 

And why do the managers always come out after an ejection? They aren't discussing a substitution. 

It's my #1 complaint about the MLB game...A player or coach gets ejected for incorrectly arguing judgement. Not that it matters if they are correct or not because even if they are correct players and coaches can and should be ejected even if they are correct and the umpires got it wrong. But, they get ejected...and they keep continuing the argument, often times leaving the dugout after they were ejected and there are no additional penalties for that. We have nearly gotten rid of Billy Martin and Earl Weaver antics of screaming matches, throwing bases and kicking dirt on shoes, etc. but, these snowflake players and coaches who can't simply accept an ejection and simply leave the field is just theater of the absurd. "Fans" love it though so, I guess MLB is fine with the status quo...

~Dawg

[dumbdumb]

I believe they will tell us they can adjust to one or the other just not to both. But @madmax is the former player who knows about this stuff, especially since he might have been a catcher, which also gives him an extra 100 points advantage from the get go, for becoming an excellent/superstar/phenom etc. umpire that gets/and earns lots of opportunity and lots of games.

[The Man in Blue]

They've been playing almost all their lives, how much more adjustment time do they need?  If you haven't learned it by now ... 😉

I'm a former catcher, too.  While I was a hotheaded PITA, I never understood the need to argue over balls and strikes.  If it's hittable, hit it.  Who cares where it is?  Why are you giving the pitcher that many opportunities?

One of my favorite lines to use: Not all strikes are meant to be hit, and not all balls are meant to be watched.

[Velho]

13 hours ago, SeeingEyeDog said:

players and coaches who can't simply accept an ejection and simply leave the field is just theater of the absurd. "Fans" love it though so, I guess MLB is fine with the status quo...

You endorse what you tolerate. Like fighting in hockey or barking at refs in the NBA (they've toned them down over the years but don't seem serious about eliminating them).

[SeeingEyeDog]

We're splitting hairs, @Velho...but when it comes to fighting in pro sports, I say let them have it but, do not put the responsibility of "officiating" or breaking up the fights on the officials. Let's take hockey...if you have ever watched European and Russian hockey, you'll notice they have eliminated fighting from their games. That was why when Ulf Sterner and those early European players came to North America to play in the NHL, they were seen as "soft". They didn't know how to fight on ice skates. This stereotype continued well into the 90's and cheap shot artist Ulf Samuelsson started to change that a bit and we have now seen enforcers from all corners of the globe in today's NHL. But, what you saw in the European game that continues to this day, by taking away fighting from their game, they now have no outlet for their aggression so, they have many, many more stick fouls. Slashes, spears, hooks and trips become their outlet. Same thing with NASCAR...if you don't let drivers slug it out off the track, now you have guys taking it out out on the track with their 3,300 pound race cars more frequently than they already are. So, let the pros fight...

But, when a pro athlete or coach is ejected...they need to leave the field.

~Dawg

[BLWizzRanger]

1 hour ago, SeeingEyeDog said:

This stereotype continued well into the 90's and cheap shot artist Ulf Samuelsson started to change that a bit and we have now seen enforcers from all corners of the globe in today's NHL.

Hey hey hey hey hey hey.... Ulf was a saint. I don't need to argue his saintlyness. He just is as long as he was on my team.

[Velho]

I'm with you @SeeingEyeDog My broader point was that MLB likes it enough that they won't stop it. We could write a doctoral thesis on how that ripples into fan behavior on MLB umps and further leads to us getting abuse at the youth level.

[MadMax]

10 hours ago, dumbdumb said:

But @madmax is the former player who knows about this stuff, especially since he might have been a catcher, which also gives him an extra 100 points advantage from the get go, for becoming an excellent/superstar/phenom etc. umpire that gets/and earns lots of opportunity and lots of games.

WhoaWhoa, how’d I get tapped into this? Yes, I was a former catcher, and that affords me a lot of “field / plate cred” that buys me less grief and scrutiny from coaches, or at least a lot of catchers advocate for me. I get/earn a lot of high(er) level assignments and opportunities, surely, and I’m deeply appreciative of them, but I’m no “better” or “excellent” than a professional, MiLB umpire; the primary difference is they can’t discuss their activity here in public discourse 🤫, while I can… I just have to be… careful about it. 

Five of “my” Vultures did MiLB ST plates (that I know of), and all 6 of us scored rather well on PitchTrack. I had one shaky session (of the 5 plates I had), complements of a 90+ mph spike job that got under a catcher’s mitt and broke my left hand. 😳 Yup, broke… and I continued and completed the session. 

Don’t need a left hand for strikes anyway. 

Now, here’s my take on why there are more of these Umpire (PU) – Batter / Mgr confrontations… Lindsay said something noteworthy – Jimenez is one of “these callup umpires”, who have been “weaned and fed” on an electronically-tracked and shaped zone. The bulk of the grief managers & players push upon these new(er) umpires is that they have “no feel” to the game, or that “you (PU) can’t reward / give him (F1) that (up/down) when you’ve been giving him (down/up) all day!” The longer-tenured umpires could mitigate some of that grief because, at the very least, their track record and tendencies were known by the participants. The new(er) guys are almost clinical… antiseptic… in their zone definition. It doesn’t matter if it’s a “freak” mistake up in the zone that the F1 hasn’t thrown for 5 innings. If it ticks the box, it’s a strike. 

Have you ever noticed that when you call into customer service, there’s often a prompt that says, “All calls are recorded for quality (or training) purposes”? And, having heard that, have you ever said, “Joyce, I’m not directing my anger at you, but at (your employers), who have somehow managed to completely screw up my (internet connection / ticket order / dishwasher, etc.). I know this is being recorded, and I want them to hear this! How frustrated I am!!”? 

Well, the PUs are mic’d, and everything is being recorded, and my experienced guess is that these managers are talking through the PU at the League. The theatrics and physical antics are gone, now it’s all about getting heard.