1B Umpire Paul Nauert ejected Red Sox second baseman Dustin Pedroia for unsportsmanlike conduct-NEC (arguing a previous inning's call) in the top of the 9th inning of the Rangers-Red Sox game. In the bottom of the 8th, with one out and none on, Pedroia attempted to check his swing on a 0-2 curveball from Rangers pitcher Mike Adams, ruled a swinging strike on appeal by Nauert. Pursuant to UEFL Rule 6-2-b-5, the call was irrecusable. At the time of the ejection, the Rangers were leading, 5-3. The Rangers ultimately won the contest, 6-3.
This is Paul Nauert (39)'s first ejection of 2012.
Paul Nauert now has 2 points in the UEFL (0 Previous + 2 MLB + 0 Irrecusable Call = 2).
Crew Chief Dana DeMuth now has 4 points in the Crew Division (3 Previous + 1 Irrecusable Call = 4).
This is Paul Nauert (39)'s first ejection of 2012.
Paul Nauert now has 2 points in the UEFL (0 Previous + 2 MLB + 0 Irrecusable Call = 2).
Crew Chief Dana DeMuth now has 4 points in the Crew Division (3 Previous + 1 Irrecusable Call = 4).
This is the 110th ejection of 2012.
This is the 44th player ejection of 2012.
This is the Red Sox's 7th ejection of 2012, 1st in the AL East (BOS 7; TOR 4; NYY 3; BAL, TB 2).
This is Dustin Pedroia's first ejection since August 19, 2008 (Bob Davidson; QOC = Correct).
This is Paul Nauert's first ejection since July 3, 2010 (Bruce Bochy; QOC = Incorrect).
Wrap: Rangers at Red Sox, 8/7/12
Video: A half inning after arguing a strike three swinging call, Pedroia is ejected for continuing the discussion
This is the Red Sox's 7th ejection of 2012, 1st in the AL East (BOS 7; TOR 4; NYY 3; BAL, TB 2).
This is Dustin Pedroia's first ejection since August 19, 2008 (Bob Davidson; QOC = Correct).
This is Paul Nauert's first ejection since July 3, 2010 (Bruce Bochy; QOC = Incorrect).
Wrap: Rangers at Red Sox, 8/7/12
Video: A half inning after arguing a strike three swinging call, Pedroia is ejected for continuing the discussion
55 comments :
I'm a Yankee fan so this is difficult to admit, but man the check-swing call on Pedroia was not very good. He should have kept his mouth shut for the check-swing by Murphy, but at least I can see why he was upset. And admittedly, Pedroia is NEVER vehement like that.
Quite frankly I am surprised at the amount of incorrect calls, or maybe we're just seeing them more often. As much as I hate to admit it as a soccer referee and someone who still plays (GK), the two calls yesterday that led to the US womens' win were awful.
Which two calls?
When Pedey went down into the tunnel to see the replay he was seething when he came out- it was kind of like putting icing on the cake as far as the ejection although I think Nauert knew he blew the call because he didn't have a very short trigger- either that or because he hasn't had an ejection since 2010!
USA's third goal against Canada was iffy on the account of two calls preceding the penalty kick.
As for the Pedroia ejection, what's really amazing was that he wasn't ejected upon being called out on the check swing. He gave it to Nauert HARD on his way back to the dugout and didn't let up for the rest of the inning. I'm sure if a lot of other guys were working first base, Pedroia would never have made it back on the field for the top of the ninth. It may have been the biggest check swing outburst since Joey Votto -- I think Jerry Crawford had that one?
Another thing with this one was how after Pedroia got tossed, Valentine was doing everything possible to join him, but none of the umps pulled the trigger. It's been that kind of year in Boston.
is it me, or is this a new trend --- continuing and/or belatedly arguing a call after watching a replay in the clubhouse? Seems lame in principle and counterproductive as well, since it really serves no useful purpose. Deal with it and move on.
This call was so awful that I don't even think Pedroia needed to enter the clubhouse to see the replay. It wasn't even close!
Too bad that Nauert can't wear this. Must play in the UEFL because Pedroia was giving it to him for that entire half inning, because he did nothing about it.
Here is the Joey Votto play referenced above, and yes, it was involving Jerry Crawford: http://mlb.mlb.com/video/play.jsp?content_id=5768211&c_id=mlb
Crawford really was one to give back a little, wasn't he? This one here is one of my favorites: http://mlb.mlb.com/video/play.jsp?content_id=5975865&c_id=mlb
That one is especially awesome when you consider that Crawford had been umpiring for about as long as Hinch had been alive.
Knight tossed Wedge on a play that eventually led to the winning run scoring for the Orioles.
The 2nd Crawford EJ is my favorite ejection of All time.... Hinch almost cried!! It's a shame you can't do that until you've worked 25 + years in MLB ;)
Another horrible call from Brian Knight, and another horrible ejection from Brian Knight. Well, there go the chances for anything in the league this year.
The Canada GK was called for a six second violation resulting in a in direct free kick for the USA and on the free kick a Canada player had the ball hot her hand and the ref awarded the USA a penalty kick which Abby Wombach put in the net for a three all tie the USA would score in OT to win 4-3
Pedroia Video -- http://mlb.mlb.com/video/play.jsp?content_id=5768211&c_id=mlbhttp://mlb.mlb.com/video/play.jsp?content_id=5768211&c_id=mlb
The calls were not awful they were both the right call but I will give u the first one seeing as how referees never call that six second violation and unlike Canada Ia arguing the GK was given a warning about that by the assistant referee but that was a hand ball and it was definitely in the penalty area good calls on both buy the ref and I will be the first to admit I don't hesitate to blast soccer refs Cuse they have there heads shoved so far up there a-- but this is not the case this time
In my opinion,this crew is on the lower end of the crews. Since his accidents Danley has been very jittery(rightfully so). Eddings is Eddings, which can be iffy(although has gotten better), never been a fan of Nauert, although not having any ejections in 2011 does stand out. Damuth is a veteran and usually does a decent enough job.
This call wasn't even close,even from the outfield camera,my goodness. Nauert getting down to Pedey's level was kinda funny but also insulting.
As for the A.J Hinch ejection,that is gold.One of my favorite ejections clips. It is right up there with the Wolf and Robinson having a staring contest.
@Turducken: That's the Votto video UmpsRule posted. This is the Pedroia video:
http://mlb.mlb.com/video/play.jsp?content_id=23713643
To me, worst crew is Dale Scott - Dan Iassogna - Bill Miller - CB Bucknor. On the other hand, I really like Tom Hallion [Take lessons, Dale] - Brian O'Nora - Chad Fairchild - Alfonso Marquez.
Call when Pedroia at the plate is almost absurdly wrong, as if Nauert weren't paying attention and just guessed. Now you can't bring up an old play and not expect to get penalized, and the plate umpire on the Murphy hit-by-pitch play did check with 3rd base to see if Murphy swung, which would negate the HBP and be a mere strike. He swung about as much as Pedroia did. Correctly they would be a ball (Pedroia) and an HBP (Murphy). Embarrassingly bad. Then the manager, Valentine, goes out to get tossed, does everything he needed to do -- and doesn't. A sorry case all around.
I also wonder what Nauert was doing wearing those necklaces. Boy when I officiated even at the college level there was NO such extra stuff as that!
Gill or Jeremy wouldn't this fall under the post inning exemption and be a balls strike reason for ejection as padroia continued arguing through out the inning break and never really restarted the argument. As he never really stopped arguing
Nauert must use this site and have himself in the league. He waited to eject so he wouldn't lose any points on an irrecusable call for arguing an inning later.
@ spballsandstrikes: why does Naurt stand out for zero ejections>? Does Randazzo stand out for getting walked over the other day... Paul is a great guy but he allows himself to be treated poorly on the field. Despite his laid back demeanor i'd enjoy him not tolerating the BS which makes other umpires have to work that much harder.
By Nauert allowing Pedroia to do that on the field then in the dugout then allowing bobby V to be that demonstrative is embarrassing.
@RP Burke
How about when you officiated at the major league level?
@wwjd, the Post-Inning Exemption (codified as Rule 6-5-c-AR-2) applies only to ejections which occur "during an inning break immediately following the half inning in which the play to be argued occurred." Once the pitcher delivers his first pitch to the batter, the Post-Inning Exemption no longer applies.
Tmac makes a solid point. Paul plays right into the hands of the common fan, and anon poster here.
Jesus crime-mini Paul, we all know you don't want to eject, none of us do! It's more paper work, most likely the players will turn the entire focus on the ejection and forget the play. It will now be your fault the team doesn't have access to the ejected player, thereby costing them a home-run.
But my god man! Handle your business, do your F-ing job. He should have been gone before he got back to the dugout, regardless if the call was correct or incorrect.
Big Marc
I just watched to video, without sound, at work, and all I was saying to myself was 'My God, long leash is one thing, but this guy needs to be dumped'. I couldn't agree with you more.
I think Nauert showed tremendous restraint before throwing out Pedroia and also to not throw out Valentine...Bobby clearly wanted to get tossed.
I have to comment on the necklaces and bracelets as well. Nauert isn't the only one wearing them these days....but really do you need more than one Phiten necklace? I think the league should crack down on this stuff. They look silly and unprofessional.
I noticed the necklaces too and thought they were strange!
Not that it matters because of the rule posted above, but NESN did have a camera isolated on Pedroia when he took the field for the top of the ninth. He did in fact stay calm and quiet (maybe in a sarcastic way?) while in the vicinity of Nauert while going out to take his position. But it obviously didn't take long for him to start up again.
Paul is disgraceful on this clip--blows the check swing, blows the ej on pedroia the first time around, and then blows the Bobby v ej. The blown check swing is forgivable but the handling of ejections is brutal and quite frankly embarrassing.
I may be the only one on here that thinks he went, but he had a very clear downward and forward motion, he was making an attempt to hit the ball, and only checked it when he knew he wasn't. Just me personally, but I've got a very short trigger on check swings, I think he went.
In any circumstances, Pedroia should have been dumped before he got back to the dugout, even if Paul thought he missed it and was giving him some latitude in the backtalk, once he drops an F-Bomb in my direction, he's going home.
Folks can say what they want about the Eddings Davidsons etc who get all the crap on this board but those guys are well respected by their peers ...they take care of business the way it should be taken care of. This is painful to watch--it is so weak. I wonder if Paul was saying " Dustin now knock it off one more word and you're done....okay two more words....okay three more words....okay never mind I take that back...please continue to berate me yelling at the top of your lungs, displaying your swing mechanic and how far you went to all members of my crew, all teammates, all opposing players, and all 35,000 fans in Fenway. Oh by the way tell Bobby V to come out next inning too and show me up, scream at me, wave his hands, etc because I will allow that too"
"The calls were not awful they were both the right call but I will give u the first one seeing as how referees never call that six second violation and unlike Canada Ia arguing the GK was given a warning about that by the assistant referee but that was a hand ball and it was definitely in the penalty area good calls on both buy the ref and I will be the first to admit I don't hesitate to blast soccer refs Cuse they have there heads shoved so far up there a-- but this is not the case this time "
I still play soccer (GK actually) and am a certified high school referee in New York. I've actually been refereeing longer than umpiring. ANYONE who thinks that was the right call - either the delaying the restart OR the handling - is incorrect. I usually give one warning to a GK that takes more than 6 seconds. You REALLY have to push the limit to even get a warning. And on that level you had better give AT LEAST one warning (not the AR, whom should not even be speaking to players, but the middle referee). AT LEAST. Shit, I only play local rec leagues (as goalie) and if one of my peers called me out for that, I would probably be having quite a heated exchange with him or her at the next meeting.
And the ball came to the hand (watch the replay) and no advantage was gained. Unless an advantage is gained I see no reason to penalize the player for keeping her hands and arms INSIDE her body (a natural position). I have spoken to SEVERAL referees with much more experience than I have, and all concur it was an impetuous call at best.
Horrible, horrible situation handling. But I think he went. People get hung up on whether a checked swing crossed the plate, or his wrists broke. But here, Pedroia's bat was moving forward as the ball passed, and by the time he pulled back it was in the glove. He was going to try to slap it to right field, but was fooled badly.
@Tmac, you made an extremely valid counterpoint on my statement. Well done.
I hadn't thought of it that way. I was thinking more along the lines of "he can't be that bad if he isn't ejecting people," but like you and others accurately pointed out, it is being walked on.
I stand corrected.
does anybody else get reminded of Bill Hohn watching this clip and looking at Nauert, speaking solely on looks. maybe it's the clear glasses but almost thought Hohn without the crazy stache had come out of retirement. Clearly not Hohn though he would have handled business
Allow me to join the crowd bemoaning Nauert's handling of this situation. Pedroia should have been ejected, at the very latest, when he attempted to demonstrate how far he had swung with his bat. Also, I think it's obvious Valentine should have been tossed. I can't stand Bobby V, the guy is maybe the least likeable among MLB managers.
Is it me or does Paul look ridiculous. White shirt all those necklaces??? It looks so unprofessional and he was like a pussy cat handling this situation. The second Pedroia demonstrates his swing... BOUNCE!!! Whether you botched the call or not. It is situations like that, that make it harder for the other umpires.
Gutless umpiring makes everyone else work harder to control the game. Nauert was gutless 2X - Pedoria early and Valentine later
This is not how he taught us to handle situations at umpire school. LOL
"I also wonder what Nauert was doing wearing those necklaces. Boy when I officiated even at the college level there was NO such extra stuff as that! "
Umm, judging from some of the metallic alloys sitting on some of these guys' (PLAYERS) necks, methinks that this rule is more of a parochial thing.
I like Paul a lot and everyone who has had him as an instructor at Wendlstedt's has said he is the best instructor they have ever had and his rules knowledge is outstanding. That has nothing to do with this ejection however. I understand there are certain Umpires who don't like ejecting. But sometimes you just have to take care of business. I will use Ted Barrett as an example. He rarely ever ejects anybody, but there was a situation last year similar to this one. He made an incorrect check-swing call late in a game calling Matt Kemp out. Kemp immediatly starting yelling out at Barrett and was being extremely demonstrative towards Barrett. As the next batter was at plate, Kemp continued to put his arms up in the air and yell profanities. Barrett finally ejected him from the dugout. To the average fan it looked like dugout watching from Barrett, but every Umpire knows Barrett was doing what he should do. I think once Pedroia continues to yell from the dugout and you yell back at him you must throw him out then.
As far as the Bobby V non-ejection, I agree with what Nauert did there. I am admitedly a pretty good lip reader and right when Bobby got out there he said. "Why did you throw him out?" Nauert answers with his reason. Valentine than says "Well now you are going to throw me out too" and points to himself. They continue for a little while and then Valentine as he is about to walk away turns and says something else. Paul responds "I don't have to do that" most likely referring to his refusal to eject him. I love this, just because Bobby looks like a moron and that is always a good thing. Harold Reynolds said on MLB Network that he has seen a few times where a Manager will ask an Umpire to throw them out and the Umpire will refuse. I kind of like that mantra.
Those who criticize Nauert for his non-ejection of Valentine could not be more wrong.
Valentine was trying to get tossed. It was obvious. Nauert didn't play along. Instead, he made Valentine look like a fool. Because Valentine wasn't really mad, he couldn't muster up enough emotion to spike his hat, kick dirt or do anything else that would make it appear to be a legitimate argument. Valentine just looked transparent and silly.
Situation handling does not always involve unzipping and measuring.
Nauert missed the call, badly. He should have tossed Pedroia during the argument and just taken it like a man. Simple as that. This is seriously one of those cases where 'irrecusable' should really have an exception for 'continuation of crap'. Bad all around, in my opinion, and Pedroia was absolutely right to argue (in principle, save the rule book).
"Because Valentine wasn't really mad, he couldn't muster up enough emotion to spike his hat, kick dirt or do anything else that would make it appear to be a legitimate argument. Valentine just looked transparent and silly."
Seriously? So if he had been more emotional he might have gotten tossed? Last time I checked, when you continue to argue a play, whether or not you WANT to be ejected, you SHOULD and generally ARE ejected.
that is laughable Curt--to the average fan, average joe out there Nauert is the one who looks weak not Bobby V...the avg person out there will see this and say geez Bobby V goes out there, walks all over the umpire, and does not get run....its all about image, reputation, etc...guaranteed amongst managers, peers, etc his reputation is soft, not able to run people, etc
lets take a poll on here since most of us have umpired before...and many at the pro level...at least have gone to pro school...many on here have umpired some games at the big league level as call ups...will leave at that....just reply with yes or no should Valentine have been run.....here is my vote....YES
12:46, what I am saying is that Valentine wanted to go, Nauert recognized this and wouldn't give him what he wanted. Nauert wins. That seriously got under Valentine's skin.
1:42, you can spout off all the pro experience the commenters here allegedly have. But one thing is for certain: not one of you has as much experience as Paul Nauert. Good for him for not falling into the eject-em-all-let-god-sort-em-out mentality.
YES- Nauert has not had an ejection since 2010 so maybe he forgot how to eject- Paul is a good overall umpire though despite the blown call
For what it's worth, prior to his Dan Warthen ejection last month, C. B. Bucknor had not ejected since 2010.
Gotta love that Crawford/Hinch clip - obviously Hinch did not know who he was dealing with. And Crawford knew, just as obvious, that there was fresh meat ready to be chewed on
Is Hinch even in baseball still?
I think an interesting idea would be for there to be a "Well Handled" and "Not Well Handled" check box next to the ejections, as well as the correct/incorrect/inconclusive buttons.
Sometimes correct call situations are not well handled. And sometimes incorrect call situations are well handled. It would be interesting to see what people think.
All Nauert had to do is put the "stop sign" hand up & say, "knock it off Dustin - that's balls & strikes" so the warning was visible to everyone. Then, when Pedoria started demonstrating, run him with a simple, no brainer EJ mechanic.
Now when Bobby comes out, Nauert can calmly say "I gave him a chance and he kept going - he left me no choice Bobby".
I know this is pro ball, but that's the way we would handle it in NCAA baseball. I think the MLB guys might be able to use some of the same tactics to handle these type of situations... just my opinion.
Now, go ahead, I'm ready to get blasted by the ex/current pro guys on how this suggestion would not work at the professional level...
@ LouOCNY
Hinch is the vice president of professional scouting for the Padres.
FYI - the way Crawford handled those ejections is "Old School" and is NOT how MLB wants its umpires to conduct themselves on the field... REGARDLESS of the players, coaches and/or managers behavior. (and yes, I KNOW its a dbl standard).
The days of the Earl Weaver & Lou Pinella like arguments where Managers & Umpires are going "nose to nose" are slowly fading away... which I think is good for the game in general - despite the fact that they can mother f**k umpires yet we should not reciprocate.
If you think about it, NBA, NFL & NHL officials rarely stoop down to players/coaches levels, and I think MLB umpires are learning to do the same (I know, in other sports, they are not allowed to come onto the field, court etc. like they can in baseball). Still, in my opinion, that doesn't mean that we as umpires should lower ourselves to their sub standard behaviors.
Personally, I like the way Dan Bellino has handled some of his EJs where he listens, explains and then CALMLY gives a really easy ejection mechanic and then says VERY LITTLE after. Yeah - it doesn't make the highlight reels and isn't very interesting "war" stories... BUT I think is very effective and gets the job done without reflecting badly on us as umpires. The NCAA is going this route and I think MLB is headed in the same direction. Yes, I know the two games are totally different, however, I think MLB umpires can take a similar like approach.
I disagree with curt 110%.
FYi...... I have found curt to be out of line so many times, the word troll could be used. It's almost as if he is paid to be shill and post disinfo.
I now skip any posts curt has written. The site has become far more enjoyable
Big Marc, the troll is you. When I criticize an umpire, you disagree. When I say the umpire did a good job, you disagree.
Something about calling me a troll when I make pro-umpire comments on a pro-umpire site just seems boneheaded. You're not stupid. You're just a jerk, being disagreeable for the sake of being disagreeable.
There's a reason Nauert watches major league games from first base, and you watch Nauert on tv.
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