MLB Umpire Mark Wegner Makes Costly Blunder During Red Sox vs. Astros Game

Umpires in the MLB are naturally prone to making a few human errors over the course of a long season. CB Bucknor is already getting plenty of attention for the wrong reasons following his comical blunder on Tuesday. His colleague Mark Wegner made an equally egregious error on the same day, but his mistake went largely unnoticed until it was too late to overturn it.

Mark Wegner was the official behind home plate for Game 2 of the series between the Boston Red Sox and the Houston Astros at Daikin Park. The Astros had a 5-1 lead in the game in the bottom of the fifth inning. Cam Smith came to the plate with runners on the corners and two outs to face Red Sox starter Bryan Bello.

Smith went behind 0-2 in the count after whiffing at a low outside breaking ball from Bello. At the same time, the runner on first base made a break for second base. He reached safely as the errant throw from the catcher cannoned off the second baseman’s glove on the hop, allowing the man on third to score a run. But the home plate umpire forgot to count the pitch as a strike.