Yankees slugger Aaron Judge took to social media after Monday night's dramatic win over the Royals, after an ESPN analyst criticized the All-Star's baserunning on a close play at home plate.
Longtime ESPN analyst Eduardo Perez took aim at Judge on Twitter after Judge was nailed at the plate on a comebacker to Royals pitcher Carlos Hernandez with one out in the top of the seventh inning.
Most observers watching the game were focused on the call at the plate, as replays appeared to show Judge got in under the tag of Kansas City catcher Cam Gallagher. The play was even reviewed, but the original out call was curiously upheld.
Perez, however, apparently thought the play never should have been that close in the first place.
"We need a better secondary lead by Aaron Judge on play at the plate," Perez said on Twitter. "He was flat footed without taking any kind of secondary. You make the call. The little things play big! Should have made it easy without a close play! Know better, do better."
Judge, either snitch-tagged or perhaps just scanning Twitter after the game, responded with a dig at Perez.
"These 'experts' been out of the game too long ...," Judge said, including a couple laughing emojis.
Perez has a point about Judge's lead -- he appeared to moving back toward the third-base bag while the pitcher, Hernandez, was in the windup. With a better lead, there might not have been a call at the dish for the home-plate umpire to get wrong.
Even still, it looked to be yet another bad call in a season full of them for MLB's boys in blue. And Judge, if he has a gripe at all, it should probably be with the umpire, not Perez.