Ump throws out fan!

[yankeegeek]

McMichael ejected during seventh-inning stretch

August 8, 2001


CHICAGO (AP) -- Harry Caray never caused this much commotion during the seventh-inning stretch.

Former Chicago Bears defensive tackle Steve McMichael was ejected from Wrigley Field on Tuesday night when he criticized an umpire after singing ``Take Me Out to The Ball Game.''

Before leading the crowd of 40,266 in the song, McMichael yelled out, ``I'm going to have to have a talk with that umpire down there.''

Home plate umpire Angel Hernandez -- the subject of McMichael's criticism -- appeared steamed by the comments and signaled for McMichael's ejection. According to Cubs officials, Hernandez asked crew chief Randy Marsh to call to the press box and ask that McMichael be removed.

McMichael was upset by an apparent blown call by Hernandez in the sixth inning of Chicago's 5-4 win over Colorado.

Ron Coomer tried to score from third when Denny Neagle's pitch hit off Colorado catcher Adam Melhuse's glove. Melhuse recovered and threw to Neagle. Hernandez called Coomer out although replays appeared to show that Coomer slid in before being tagged.

The Cubs have been using guest singers during the seventh-inning stretch ever since Caray, their longtime announcer, died before the 1998 season.



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This ump Angel Hernandez is a fool. I remember him giving us a hard time a few times this year. Joe made some comments about this fool. I think that he is the same Ump that made many bad calls against the Yankees in Boston a few months ago!!

[Slippery Elm]

Well, DID he leave? Why SHOULD he have left? Is an umpire the dictator of the Press Box?? I would told him to %@#& off.

[Luvtino]

That is absurd. Give me a freakin' break.

[Superunknown]

That's crazy! What authority does the ump have over FANS, for godsake?

That's one of the weirdest things I've ever heard.

[cman]

I didnt know umps could throw out fans....

However, you have to be some kind of stupid to say something bad about an ump over the stadium loudspeaker...that is ASKING for trouble.

[Winger03]

I know this will be unpopular, but I agree with the umpire. Having a "fan" (in this case a fan with access to a microphone) single out an umpire for a call which went against the home team is similar to yelling "fire in a crowded movie theatre".

I am looking at it from the umps point of view. I referee adult and children's ice hockey games, and have a certain sympathy for the job referees / umpires do, and the situations they place themselves in by virtue of their calls. It is hard enough when a close call goes against the home team, now imagine that someone somewhat influential (perhaps a former athlete with access to a microphone in the stadium) announces that he "will have a talk with you" about the call. Imagine the commotion that will result. As soon as I saw that on tv, I said to myself "McMichael is gone". Good for Hernandez.

Several had wondered about the powers that umpires / officials have over elements not connected to the game (ie: fans, announcers etc.). Actually, they have pretty broad powers to maintain an orderly atmosphere for the game. Fans, announcers, players in or out of uniform, pretty much anyone in the stadium / arena is subject to removal if the umpre thinks they need to go. In fact, for ice hockey, our powers begin once someone steps on to the ice. It doesn't matter if the game has started yet. We can enforce the rules prior to or after the game. That includes pregame warm ups, and the handshake line at the conclusion of the game. Last Monday, my partner and I had a pretty rough game (26 penalties / 84 minutes), and a scuffle broke out during the handshake. We had to separate the teams, order one team to their bench, order the other team to their locker room. We held the first team on the bench until the other team had all entered their locker room. Then we mat with the captains of each team and notified them that if anything happened in the parking lot, they would face diciplinary action from the league.

[cman]

Originally posted by Winger03
I know this will be unpopular, but I agree with the umpire. Having a "fan" (in this case a fan with access to a microphone) single out an umpire for a call which went against the home team is similar to yelling "fire in a crowded movie theatre".

Exactly- not to mention your gonna have some less then completley sober folks take it upon themselves to have a talk with the umps as well....not a good situation.

That kind of behavior by McMicheals simply cannot be tolerated..if you got a problem with it, just deal with it like the rest of us do...scream ,rant,rave, holler, post on BB.com....but for cryin out loud dont announce it to the other 40,000+ fans over the PA....

[Alex]

I disagree Jim - I think it was a stupid thing to do over the loudspeaker since he was a guest that was there just to sing. However, the deed was already done when the guy got ejected, he no longer posed any kind of perceived threat of inciting unrest. The only purpose that it served was assuaging Angel Hernandez's ego. He was fuming. He has blown several calls that I've seen with the Yankees & Mets that I've seen. I know umpiring isn't an easy job, but this particular umpire has a very very thin skin and you can't even look at him cross-eyed before he starts puffing his chest. This is the same Angel Hernandez that has called a balk on Andy Pettitte twice and refused to explain to Joe, what it was about his motion he saw as a balk. He flat out refused to provide an explanation and got very irrate that anyone would even dare to question him. This guy has shown himself to be very egotistical and unconscientious.

[okieyankee]

Another example of what is wrong with baseball -- a fan is held accountable for his actions and an umpire isn't.

[SkooterPhil#10]

He didn't even say anything bad! Just that he was going to have to talk with the ump! What an effing jerk...

[Michaels07]

Kill the Umpire.
Alex good observation this Angel is bad bad bad bad,he`s no Angel.
A former strictly NL Umpire who was looking to call a balk on Andy.
He`s another UMP who will be canned at year end.I hope.:bad-ass:

[yankeegeek]

Angel is a fool that loves the limelight. Any time he can get into the paper he will. I remember the game where he threw Bobby Walenswine out and this guy looked like he loved it.

He has too much power and the league needs to put him into his place!

[orangemom]

Originally posted by Slippery Elm
Well, DID he leave? Why SHOULD he have left? Is an umpire the dictator of the Press Box?? I would told him to %@#& off.

My thoughts exactly!

[BellaNY2]

McMichael can say whatever the hell he likes..he is a fan and he can comment on anything he wishes..you can't throw out any fan for that. He didnt use any profanity..so what right does an umpire have? NONE he has rights to deal with the players not the fans. OH yes, I remember how many bad calls he made against the yankees. &po'd&

[YanksRockMan]

This is why I hate most of the umps we have today!

[bombergirl]

Winger03, I can see where you're coming from. However, it seems to me that what McMichael said doesn't quite qualify as "incitement", which you seem to be talking about when you refer to words that are like "yelling Fire in a crowded theater". If he yelled "Kill the umpire", "Let's go show that stupid ump", etc. then I think ejecting him would be justified. However, a comment like the one that was reported, while IMHO pretty tacky to say after singing "Take Me Out to The Ballgame", doesn't seem to be too dangerous. I guess it would also depend on how he said what he said. Did he say it in a joking manner? Or did he say it like a threat?

I know it's easy to blame the umps for everything, and of course some bring it on themselves with rude or arrogant behavior. But while jawing at umps has gone one since baseball began, there definitely is a line there, which if crossed represents a threat not only to the individual umpire, but the general sense of order in the game. That would include things like players shoving umpires, or throwing bats at them like Carl Everett did. Or fans throwing objects on the field to protest a call. I don't think McMichael crossed that line, but I agree that there is one, and if his behavior had been more threatening than comes across from this article, than the ejection was justified.

B "JM2C" G

[BellaNY2]

Carll Everett threw a bat wut lol im

[CaptainCargo]

Umpires of old definitely had thicker skins. How many Managers would get away with the antics of a Billy Martin or Leo Durocher these days??

Umpires used to endure all sorts of foul taunts from the stands. Now they're a bunch of candy asses. "Kill the Ump!!" was once an acceptable shout from the stands. Now it'll get you tossed.


Casey