E23 - Hunter Wendelstedt Ejects Aaron Boone for Something a Fan Said, Then Ump Says He Doesn't Care

[@johnrothman154]

I don't like Aaron Boone, but the line "I'm not probably right, I'm fucking right!" is one of my favorite hot mic moments ever.

[@joeg5414]

I like how the guy who yelled is looking around like "I wonder who did that?"🤣

[@vw8886]

Wendelstedt not admitting he was wrong is a big problem. Just withholding postseason assignments isn't enough.

[@noahgugliotta8440]

Agreed. Lindsay did a good job explaining why this is wrong, but there needs to be bigger consequences. For this situation there should have been a suspension. I really do support umps and think they get crapped on unnecasarily. There needs to be a change.

[@ssmith7074]

Blame the union.

[@mikecumbo7531]

How many years of service does Hunter have? Any chance of him retiring this winter?

[@Ghostrider6A]

​@mikecumbo7531 NL since 1997 if memory serves me correctly.

[@drjosholds]

@@mikecumbo7531 Retire so he can go run his umpiring school...

[@phillipmendenhall4966]

Wendelstadt escalating to an ultimatum 5 pitches into a game led to complete stupidity. No reason for him even to escalate to that level over the HBP/check swing back and forth.

[@soupafi]

Kind of funny, considering he runs an umpire school

[@austin.draude]

Wendelstedt's whole season has been complete stupidity.

[@teebob21]

"No more, knock it off" is a MUCH better Stop Sign than "One more word" or its variants.

[@rysher004]

My go to was always, "I've heard enough." In a stern tone it gets the point across that you're done with their nonsense.

[@Rabbi_D]

Wendelstedt was hunting for an ejection - fan yelled "Let's go, home plate", which 1) isn't ejectable language and 2) isn't personal the way a manager or player would be (using umpire's first name during argument)

[@mpthorvonericksen]

That's what I think is the worse part. The fan said: "Let's Go Home Plate!" ... like that's nothing...

[@1969EType]

Let’s go home plate is challenging the umpire’s judgement…in this case whether the batter was HBP. Challenging an umpire’s judgement no matter how polite a player or manager is about it, is by rule, ejectionable. The fact that someone not on the field of play said it…that is a separate conversation, of course.

[@mrbow50001]

@@1969EType that is exactly why umps also need to have that awareness of who is saying what

[@michaelfalkner1186]

And not only that, IT WASN'T BOONE!!! I have every inkling to rag on players, coaches, managers, etc. for the increasing ejection counts and all that stuff. THIS, however... Wow. Just... wow.

[@bernier42]

Hence why Lindsay said ultimatums are a bad idea.

[@nevadadan4113]

Aaron Boone: "I didn't say anything!" Wendelstedt: "You just did, you're outta here!!"

[@utubeadsaredworst5121]

I just love “I’m not probably right, I’m F**king right, HUNTER”

[@PaulHarvey3]

Does the fact that Hunter knows he's not going to get a postseason assessment this year give him any interest in improving anything this year? Or does it just make him decide to say "screw it" and do the absolute minimum to stay employed?

[@lrccolt4]

Great point - why try hard if you know you won't be getting postseason but can't get fired.

[@dean_604]

@@lrccolt4 maybe because you have an umpire training business that would rely on your credibility for it to succeed? 🤷‍♂

[@kicking222]

Let's not forget that his scorecard for this game was also absolutely atrocious. Truly a pitiful performance from start to finish, and an even more pitiful follow-up of refusing to accept that he was wrong.

[@ronpeacock9939]

OMG.. I do umpire at the HS level and WE are told to never do that kind of line drawing.. because just like Lyns states... one more word and your gone... Ok.. you now have to toss.. you painted yourself in the corner... This is a very bad look.. I can only think that Hunter is trying to get Angel out of the news...

[@jamiethornton6101]

The worst part of all this is, it was the fourth pitch of the day. Not late in the 8th inning and he was hot and tired from working the plate on a hot day. The fourth pitch of the day. Yikes.

[@mahasw777]

Excellent analysis. And Wendelstedt doubling down makes it worse.

[@scottdeakes8494]

As officials, we are there to serve the game. No place for ego where we are serving.

[@Michael-gu5kl]

Lindsay, as ALWAYS great job with the video and I remember a few years ago during an HS Game something like this happened to an Umpire where he was eligible to work the State Finals and with that happening he didn't get to work the State Tournament!

[@rc24caldwell19]

I mean, I get that Aaron Boone is probably not most umpire's fav managers, but there has to be consequences beyond maybe not getting a post-season assignment? Delivering such a heavy handed ultimatum that early in a game = bad Saying "I don't care who said it, you're gone!", then doubling down after the game when the whole thing had already been flushed out = Brutally unacceptable

[@bruceboman9801]

Hunter hasn't gotten too many post season assignments over the years. His tenure gives him a 2 slot like Angel, but has not moved on as crew chief material. Ultimatums and "I don't cares", are so passè. Going back and admitting being mistaken is seen as weakness. Plus, Johnny T.'s strike zone has really expanded. Sidenote. Great on field sound. Wish we had more of this so we don't have to lip read. Calling the game is different than game management. They're intertwined.

[@Ghostrider6A]

I fail to see how Hunter missed the HBP. He checked for a swing as if U1 would have ruled a swing, it would have been a dead ball strike (and strike 3, an out). The HBP mechanic was correct.

[@bruceboman9801]

@@Ghostrider6A I might have not seen the whole play. Batter checked his swing, no strike, ball hit his back foot. Was the HBP called? No. Too busy with men acting like spoiled, immature idiots. Was the end result batter going to 1st on HBP?? No. Ergo, he missed it.

[@ohnoihavetothinkofahandle]

​@@bruceboman9801 At 1:23 you can see the scorebug with no outs, runner on first, and a new batter at the plate. The HBP was awarded, which is what Boone was yelling about in the first place.

[@bruceboman9801]

@@ohnoihavetothinkofahandle Fantastic. Thanks for clarifying that. My bad. See how easy that was?

[@matrixphijr]

I love that you talked about the ultimatum aspect of this. Really drove home the point that Hunter backed himself into a corner by acting stupid and had to do more stupid to get out of it. Greg Amsinger had a great anecdote back when this happened: when he was in school, he was being the class clown, and the teacher disciplined him and said, "If I hear one more word out of you, you're going in detention," so he went back to his seat and put his head down, and his friend yelled 'WORD!' and the teacher sent Greg to detention because they weren't actually paying attention to what happened, just _listening for something to happen._ Anybody with siblings will probably have a similar story about getting in trouble with their parents.

[@andrewyarosh1809]

If MLB had any stones, they’d make Wendelstadt go out in front of reporters and TV cameras, watch the video and then explain himself. And then go out in front of the Yankee Stadium crowd and apologize….. with his face on the Jumbotron.

[@randolphhudson8645]

The umpire doesn't care about the playoffs, he's getting paid and getting away with it, its sickening how even when the umpire is caught red handed, at being way out of line you just brush it off, but if this was a player or coach this be a 20 or 30 minute video

[@KeithCavey]

+1 for the Craig Ferguson style "¡Ay, caramba!" 😂

[@vincentwendt720]

I normally side with umpires on ejections, but not this one. This is ridiculous. This is a good video to show what not to do.

[@JPINFV]

No comment on the fact that Hunter doubled down after the game and claimed that he has never thrown out a manager due to a fan, so it obviously couldn't have happened this time?

[@duffyy1]

LETS GO HOME PLATE. Hunter most likely will be fined and will have games taken away from him. League won’t admit it though. Boone on Jomboy made it sound that the leauge was very pissed off at Hunter.

[@kevincarr2521]

And Hunter is the owner of an umpire school. That's a problem.

[@votenanocratic]

"I don't care." "WHY ARE YOU HERE!?"

[@Kurgosh1]

Three words should cost Hunter his job. "I don't care," should be an absolute career ender. Fire him right now.

[@evanhughes7933]

Great video & excellent analysis as usual

[@bsdsooner]

Don’t ever do what Hunter Wendelstedt does is great advice. He is horrible. MLB has a massive ump problem they have to address.

[@thewordmastr]

His father was a respected umpire. Hunter is a far cry from his dad, and can be put in the with Angel, CB, Laz as one of the worst umpires. According to the umpire grades in that game he had a 68% correct strike call percentage. That is actually worse than Angel!

[@JPINFV]

Respectable father, but an incompetent son named "Hunter"? Where have I seen this recently?

[@jeremygoldenberg9617]

@@JPINFV FFS can we keep the politics out of it? It's everywhere constantly, does baseball really need this shit?

[@teebob21]

@@jeremygoldenberg9617 You're asking to keep the politics out of it...on THIS channel? Are you new here?

[@deputyduffy]

Playoffs....Playoffs . this guy needs a 30 day vacation. He needs to remember he is not the show. The game is the show.

[@kevindavis8175]

I think Hunter shot himself in the foot when he said that he didn’t care who said it.

[@DDAUmps]

This is an embarrassment to Harry and the school. Unlike Hunter, Harry wanted to be an umpire. Hunter only became an umpire after he couldn’t handle college. He went to school and got a job. No surprise there. Nepotism is common for MLB umpires. Shag/Jerry Crawford, all the Runges, etc. This might be the incident that closes Wendelstedt school down. Just like the bowling incident with the Jim Evans school.

[@transitfan954]

What a tool! Harry is probably turning over in his grave

[@CommonSense823]

The best thing MLB could do is make an example of a couple umpires who take it too far. Fire their worthless asses and maybe, just maybe you end up with a better product.

[@jimtoms7591]

I defend umpires and other sports officials 99.99% of the time, but this is indefensible.

[@priceright8963]

"I don't care who said it" is tantamount to "I can to whatever I want". Unacceptable, and Hunter trying to justify his actions was even worse. You're an umpire, not a bouncer.

[@rigojeftegalo3282]

Fans is the trouble maker by making Aaron Boone ejected.

[@CenzoVD]

This cannot happen. It’s absolutely unacceptable. This umpire needs to be fined.

[@good_beans]

Typo alert: you accidentally put an 'n' in that last word instead of an 'r'.

[@CenzoVD]

@@good_beans no this is not a fireable offense. He doesn’t need to lose his job and livelihood over this.

[@terryrose4804]

Ah. I see your "r" and "n" reacts followed you here from Jomboy's take on this situation.

[@whodoyoudancefor]

​@@CenzoVDHe wasn't a good ump in the first place. He pulled this stunt. And then he doubled down with his "Someone at the other end of the dugout ..." line that absolutely no one believes. It's absolutely fireable. He doesn't need to lose his livelihood, but he absolutely needs to lose his position in the best baseball league in the world. Let him earn peanuts elsewhere.

[@priceright8963]

@@terryrose4804 Jomboy's take is a lot more sensible than the people making excuses for Hunter here.

[@gentlemanjake8005]

This is why no one should have a problem when an umpire looks into the dugout when he hears chirping. The reason they do that is because they want to eject the right guy. The alternative is this silliness.

[@le9335]

This actually makes baseball fun. Love this dumb stuff. Classic!

[@morningsidedriverock]

2 more ejections left from this series. lol. Then we have tonight…

[@rigojeftegalo3282]

Umpire made the wrong call.

[@MaylaJ.]

Was looking forward to what you’d say about this one….

[@Rick-tj5iq]

The minor leagues have better umpiring than the majors.

[@mse326]

Is Pat Hoberg inured? I was looking at umpire scorecards for Wendelstedt's game and noticed Pat wasn't listed in their data for this year

[@roybokelman4215]

I dislike Boone’s histrionics, but he got done dirty.

[@mpthorvonericksen]

And his Zone was pretty crap all game as well.

[@mikeomoran9256]

This crew needs to be broken up

[@Sean-uh6te]

Thank you for the video

[@raysprof]

Best theory out there: Either: 1) The Yankees fan knew he could help the Yankees by getting Boone thrown out of the game. Or, 2) Wendelstedt is secretly a Yankees fan. He did it intentionally for the same reason. "Or" means both conditions could be true. Conspiracy? I think not.

[@priceright8963]

Well, the Yankees lost this game.

[@700Ezalb]

Best video on this channel.

[@jeremygoldenberg9617]

Dan Bellino didn't work the post season that year, but then promptly got promoted to Crew Chief the next season. Not a good look.

[@FrankRice-v2k]

This is why Hunter will never be a crew chief

[@1NobleGiant]

It's crazy how Hunter turned into his dad from a physical standpoint. But I've been waiting for this video 😂

[@DDAUmps]

His dad actually wanted to be an umpire and was great. Hunter didn’t want to be an umpire until he couldn’t handle college. He went to umpire school and obviously got a job due to nepotism. Not a good way to promote your school.

[@whodoyoudancefor]

Perhaps the most damning part of this total shitshow from Wendelstedt is "Let's go, home plate!" being what triggered the ejection. Incredibly soft. Really good Ron Kulpa reference. It's guys like this - and acting like this only ever resulting in slaps on the wrist instead of a hammer being brought down - that makes everything harder for all umps.

[@brianmullaney6237]

So not only does Hunter not know where the strike zone is, he just randomly ejects people. What decade will MLB actually hold umpires accountable? (by sending them down, not just having them stay home for the playoffs)

[@bruceboman9801]

There's been talk of a relegation system. I.E. below avg. % MLB ratings, send down to AAA, bring up excellent AAA % to MLB. Obviously so many other particulars. Union negotiation issue at the very least.

[@teebob21]

Wake me up when the collective bargaining agreement allows that.

[@bruceboman9801]

@@teebob21 Got that right.

[@DJTexan]

This is a disgrace. Umpire union needs to go. It’s bad enough that you called that pitch way outside a strike, then you eject someone for saying, “let’s go, homeplate.” Even if Boone did say that, it’s not ejection worthy. If you can’t recognize a managers voice from a fans voice, and are that easily offended, you have no business being a major league umpire let alone run an umpire school. Wendelstedt should be fined and suspended for this, but probably won’t because of union. If I or any other umpire pulled this stunt back in the 80s, we’d be physically attacked by manager and most likely fired since we didn’t have unions. Hudson also needs to be disciplined for joining in, defending Wendlestedt’s foolishness, for double teaming Boone, and for putting hands on Boone. I get that Boone has been annoying in past but he is definitely in the right here. If you hear the audio, Wendlestedt admits that it probably wasn’t Boone but he doesn’t care. Totally unprofessional considering that what was said wasn’t ejection worthy anyway. If the union doesn’t go then ejections need to be reviewable and reversible. There are plenty of microphones around to make that possible. If they can’t be reversed during game, then the fines and suspensions for the ejection should be transferred and imposed on the umpires. Neither will probably happen, but until umpires are again humbled and held accountable like we were in the past, we will continue to see ridiculous stuff like this.

[@BIOHAZARDRUSGaming]

Video 14 of Petitioning for an Ejection Pace Counter in the description of each E video!

[@pavanatanaya]

Hunter's pregame bucket of chicken clearly didnt agree with him!

[@DoctorWho14615]

Too bad the umpires union is just as bad as the players union when handling bad actors, doesn't matter what you do, they will defend you.. see their dogged determination to keep Hernandez around. Maybe MLB can break up the crew since them boys got issues... needs to be further penalties for these shenanigans.

[@Rick-tj5iq]

I'm a union guy. But not in this instance.

[@edb7300]

Thanks!

[@JoshSmith-pb8rw]

This situation would be the perfect time for MLB to set a precedent, desperately needed precedent, but Manfred is equally as bad at his job.

[@Mattywill29]

They need instant punishment not an early vacation when this idiot has an umpire school he makes extra revenue off of so it doesn't affect his bottom line. Punish them up front with fines and suspensions. It will stop quickly.

[@rayh592]

Baseball has made itself a huge joke by allowing their ego-driven umpires to make themselves the center of the game. Baseball needs to get their umpires under control, quickly, or lose fans. Fines and suspensions for wrong calls need to exist.

[@teebob21]

How many games do you work each year?

[@priceright8963]

@@teebob21 About the same as you on a major league level.

[@richblunt1309]

I can't name more then a handful of hockey refs, or football but I sure can name a lot of umpires. I think they go to a challenge system on balls n strikes, probably a lot of ejections go away. That would leave pretty much half swings, which I am not sure wtf they do. I like the fairness of the swing rule but it just creates some real strife lol.

[@whodoyoudancefor]

​@@richblunt1309Swings are easy to solve. The rulebook says a swing is the attempt to strike at the ball. Every single attempt to check a swing is proof the batter is not attempting to strike the ball, ergo every checked swing is successful. QED. This simple interpretation eliminates a point of contention, cleans up a poorly defined judgement call, and improves offense by forcing pitchers to throw more strikes.

[@teebob21]

@@whodoyoudancefor Good idea, but it doesn't go far enough. For completely consistent officiating, all swings are no longer strikes. This completely eliminates the controversy of judging a player's attempt to strike at a pitched ball, whether on full or partial swings. Pitchers must throw into the strike zone to earn a strike.

[@priceright8963]

What's the difference between Aaron Boone and Hunter Wendelstedt? Aaron Boone is going to the World Series.

[@mulgrum]

Obviously a very bad ejection. Blaming the umpire’s union, however, is just wrongheaded. Like all unions, it is a bargaining unit that negotiates terms of employment, including disciplinary powers, with MLB. If MLB wants the authority to suspend umpires, it can bargain for it - just as they did with the player’s union. They obviously don’t think it’s important enough to give something else up in exchange.

[@Calibrex_Gaming]

Nah, we can blame the unions as they protect this garbage

[@binder38us]

Umpires HAVE MASSIVE EGOS. That is the problem with baseball this season

[@hwileyiii]

Give it a rest. A bunch of whiners. Plus MLB wants warnings. Those are ultimatums. Bet you're wrong about post season too.

[@christalball93_]

You guys should do a video analyzing Angel

[@bhamsoxfan72]

Not saying Hunter was right, but if Boone wasn't such an a$$hole, he might have been given the benefit of the doubt in this situation. Not even what, 10-15 pitches into the game and he's 3 sweat beads away from going full 3yo temper tantrum? I'd say Boone is a clown, but that would be insulting to clowns.

[@BASEBALLFURIES.]

what a trooper, boone gets ejected for arguing a ball-strike call that went against the next hitter just because he stands with the a's in oakland

[@stephenkasper6081]

Bad game management for sure. But Boone has a long history of being obnoxious and not knowing the rules. Hunter probably misses that wide pitch because he's distracted. No Ultimatums, but he worked very hard to earn that "final warning."

[@1969EType]

Oh boo hoo! Oh noes! Cry me a river for Aaron Boone and his “savages in the box”! If you are an MLB manager and you get thrown out for something a fan said then you have a HUGELY negative reputation proceeding you on the field. 29 other MLB managers figured out how to get ejected fewer times than Boone in 2023. Get better, Aaron…you’re horrible. Figure it out. Nope…we’re all gonna’ just pile on Hunter instead. Without umpires, all you have is a scrimmage…

[@priceright8963]

Yeah, the person who didn't do anything should get better. Hunter embarrassed the umpiring profession that day, but not you apparently.

[@jeremygoldenberg9617]

It's almost like Boone did nothing wrong, and Hunter did. It's not "piling on" when literally only one person is at fault.

[@locustjohn3865]

Aaron Boone should be ejected from every game, just on general principals.