Most people don’t know the names of refs or umpires around a specific league, but every sport has some that all fans are aware of. Sometimes it’s because they are genuinely good at what they do, and other times it is because they are known for missed calls and people don’t want to see them involved with their favorite team. In the MLB, every fan knows who umpire Angel Hernandez is. Unfortunately for Hernandez, it is because he is known for not being the best umpire.
The thing with baseball is that it’s a lot easier to tell when an umpire misses a call compared to other sports. Calling a penalty on a player in hockey or football, or calling a foul on someone in basketball can be tough and the calls are often debated. Some can go either way. However, when a pitch is out of the strike zone, there’s no debating it. Angel Hernandez is known for incorrectly calling balls and strikes, and it has once again been on display this season.
So, why does Angel Hernandez have a job? Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic recently shared his thoughts on that matter, and he noted a legal dispute between Hernandez and the MLB as a potential reason. Hernandez filed a racial discrimination lawsuit against the MLB back in 2017, and if he were to be fired, he could sue the league again.
Angel Hernandez gets praise from colleague
The fans might not have a lot of good things to say about Angel Hernandez, but one person that does is former umpire Ted Barrett.
“I’ve seen a lot of negative posts about this man, thought it was time for me to share my perspective,” Barrett said in an Instagram post. “He is one of the kindest men I have ever known … His mistakes are sent out to the world, but his kind deeds are done in private. The man is selfless … I could write some of the things I have witnessed where Ángel was incredibly kind to someone. As a matter of fact, I could post one every day for the rest of my life and I wouldn’t come close to telling the whole story. I literally saw him save a desperate woman from doing something tragic. I literally have seen him give complete strangers clothes off his back. Since retiring I miss a few things about the job. Watching Ángel love on people is the thing I miss the most.”
Unfortunately, being a good person doesn’t help with calling balls and strikes. MLB fans might not like it, but Hernandez likely isn’t going anywhere.
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