An MLB umpire who came under scrutiny after he seemingly inexplicably ejected Diamondbacks starter Madison Bumgarner from a game earlier this week has addressed the incident.
Veteran ump Dan Bellino apologized on Friday for the strange episode, which saw Bumgarner tossed after just one inning during his most recent start following a tense exchange with Bellino during the customary check for foreign substances between innings.
Bellino said he had fallen short of his own expectations of conduct.
"I would like to address my actions on May 4 involving Madison Bumgarner," Bellino said. "When I began my MLB career almost 15 years ago, I received some good advice. I was told to umpire every game as if my children were sitting in the front row. I fell short of those expectations this week. While I can't go back and change what happened, I take full accountability. I will learn from this incident, and I sincerely apologize."
In addition to the apology, Bellino was reportedly punished over the incident, according to ESPN's Jesse Rogers, though the nature of the reprimand was unclear.
Bellino seemed to provoke the bizarre confrontation when, during the substance check, he held onto Bumgarner's hand and stared him directly in the eyes for what felt like longer than necessary.
The 32-year-old left-hander didn't seem to appreciate the extra attention, and that's when the two exchanged heated words. Bumgarner was promptly tossed, and had to be restrained from getting at Bellino by teammates.
Bumgarner was not expected to face any discipline over the incident, Rogers reported.
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