PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — With only one run and 26 total strikeouts on Sunday, Phillies outfielder Kyle Schwarber had enough.
After he struck out for the second out in the bottom of the ninth inning, Schwarber emphatically expressed his displeasure with the strike zone of home plate umpire Ángel Hernández, pointing out to Hernández that he was missing the call inside, outside and for both teams.
Schwarber chucked his bat and helmet onto the field and went ballistic on the umpire. Hernández ejected him.
Schwarber’s ninth-inning punchout to star Brewers closer Josh Hader was the 26th strikeout in the game between both teams — almost half the outs were strikeouts. The Phillies lost to the Brewers 1-0.
Postgame, on MLB.com, Schwarber said, he was not “here to bury anyone, but it wasn’t very good.”
“Guys were doing a really good job tonight of not saying much, and it just got to me where I was gonna stick up for myself, stick up for some other guys.”
Schwarber said he’s not in favor of an electronic strike zone; he prefers human umpires. However, he acknowledged that Sunday night’s umpiring by Hernández made it hard to score.
Phillies manager Joe Girardi agreed that type of strike zone makes it harder for hitters because they’re going to swing at pitches they usually don’t.
“It’s frustrating,” Girardi said, “especially for a guy [like Schwarber] that has such a great eye. He prides himself on that.”
This is not the first time players or managers have been frustrated with Hernández, who has made many controversial and unpopular calls before.
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