Another day of Major League Baseball games, another performance by a home plate umpire that can best be described as disconcerting.
Manny Gonzalez was behind the plate on Monday during the Baltimore Orioles doubleheader against the Toronto Blue Jays. Pretty much all day long during the first game, fans were perplexed and angered by his balls and strike calls, which seemed to defy logic and common decency.
— Welcome to the Ump Show (@umpjob) September 5, 2022
There have been several iffy calls today from home plate umpire Manny Gonzalez, but this strike three to Ryan Mountcastle has the best case for the Orioles' irritation pic.twitter.com/ipq51NuZz2
— Andy Kostka (@afkostka) September 5, 2022
Called out on strikes on that 7th pitch below the zone. Awful, awful work being done by Manny Gonzalez in this game. #Birdland #NextLevel pic.twitter.com/DtKRzODCAq
— Cashflow Sports (@cashflowsportz) September 5, 2022
Here are the strike and ball calls on both teams through eight innings.
Toronto batters are the first image, Orioles the second pic.twitter.com/pk1tOiRMN9
— Zach Silver (@zachsilver) September 5, 2022
What an awful called fifth pitch looking strikeout by the umpire. Just terrible #Orioles. pic.twitter.com/o2XGbIy43V
— Elon Musk = Apartheid Clyde (@NATOKeepsUsSafe) September 5, 2022
The Blue Jays ended up winning the game 7-3. But it seemed like all any fans wanted to discuss was the miserable day behind the plate for Gonzalez. While he hasn’t developed the reputation that someone like Angel Hernandez has, Gonzalez is certainly putting himself in that kind of company with his performance on Monday.
Manny Gonzalez may be the only umpire worse than Angel Hernandez. At least today but he is absolutely terrible
— New lease & ownership O’s (@orioles_insider) September 5, 2022
Manny Gonzalez, YOU have had your application accepted into the MD school of the blind.
— Alex talking at the end of the bar. (@AlexS1898) September 5, 2022
Wow, Manny Gonzalez making a legit bid for the worst plate game of the season. #BlueJays
— Chris Henderson (@Baseball4Brains) September 5, 2022
The worst part of this horrible strike zone by Manny Gonzalez is that he won't even be held accountable for it. #Orioles #BlueJays #MLB
— Adley RutschSTAN⚾ (@roarfrom44) September 5, 2022
Those who watched the game are very eager to see the Ump Card for Gonzalez soon, and it is not going to be very pretty.
It’s been a pretty wild year for MLB umpires and bad calls. It really does feel like every day there’s a new indefensible call that comes up and leads to anger or ejections. There are a lot of people around MLB that can’t wait for robot umpires to get here and call pitches, which sure sounds like could happen relatively soon.
About Sean Keeley
Along with writing for Awful Announcing and The Comeback, Sean is the Managing Editor for Comeback Media. Previously, he created the Syracuse blog Troy Nunes Is An Absolute Magician and wrote 'How To Grow An Orange: The Right Way to Brainwash Your Child Into Rooting for Syracuse.' He has also written non-Syracuse-related things for SB Nation, Curbed, and other outlets. He currently lives in Seattle where he is complaining about bagels. Send tips/comments/complaints to sean@thecomeback.com.