Angel Hernandez recently made his 2023 debut behind the plate and his performance has left baseball fans disappointed but not surprised.
Angel Hernandez is back behind the plate, much to the dismay of many fans all over the world. Over his tenure as a major league umpire, he's widely recognized as one of the worst umpires in all aspects of the job.
But his 2023 lowlights could be used as a visual as to why the Automated Strike Zone, or ABS, needs to be brought to the MLB as soon as possible.
His recent performance as the umpire behind the plate in the Marlins–Yankees game was one of the worst-called games of the season. At this point, he ranks dead last in the MLB in correct call rate this year.
Luckily for both teams, his terrible calls didn't have an impact on the outcome of the game, thanks to a Sandy Alcantara masterclass complete game. That didn't stop Hernandez from making Alcantara's job 10 times harder.
Take a look:
Angel Hernandez was horrendous behind plate for Marlins vs. Yankees
Alcantara was robbed of multiple strikes, including a huge call on Aaron Judge that would have been strike three. It really brings to mind how impressive that complete game was from Alcantara. Not only did he pitch against a Yankees lineup with Judge, but he was up against the worst umpire in baseball as well.
There are tons of arguments for robot umpires and tons of arguments against robot umpires. But no matter which side of the argument you find yourself on, almost every baseball mind can agree that Hernandez is far too poor of an umpire to continue to work on the biggest stage.
If players play badly, they're released from their job. If managers manage poorly, they get fired. It's time to hold umpires accountable for the impact they can play on games.
