2014 UEFL Awards: Worst Umpire of Year: Tim Welke

The Umpire Ejection Fantasy League announces its postseason awards schedule, beginning with the Worst Umpire of the Year, below, and continuing with Most Improved Umpire, Fill-In, Crew Chief, Honorable, Noteworthy, Ejection(s) of the Year and concluding with Umpire of the Year. 157 total ballots were cast during this year's nominations process.

Pursuant to UEFL Rule 4-4, the postseason Awards distribution now begins with Worst Umpire of the Year.

2014 UEFL Awards: Worst Umpire of the Year: Tim Welke (22) [2013 Winner: Marty Foster]
Voting Results (min. 10%): Tim Welke (14%), Angel Hernandez (13%).

Umpire Tim Welke

Tim Welke is the Umpire Ejection Fantasy League's 2014 Worst Umpire of the Year. In his 31st Major League Baseball umpiring season, Welke finished 2014 with zero ejections; Welke ejected zero times in 2013 and once in 2012. Welke finished baseball's inaugural season of Replay Review with a .353 Review Affirmation Percentage—11 of his 17 challenged plays were overturned. Early on in the season, Welke served as crew chief for the 2014 Opening Series in Sydney, Australia and officiated his 4,000th MLB game in early April. Welke also was the first plate umpire to have an out call overturned on the auspices of experimental Rule 7.13 regarding catchers blocking home plate and was one of the first umpires to have two of his calls overturned during the same game, on May 1. , UEFL'ers described Welke as declining: "how the once mighty have fallen" and "Enrico Palazzo was better." Several voters pointed to Welke's deficiency as a crew chief, referencing Ejections 101-102: Mark Carlson (2, 3) in Washington, DC. After HP Umpire Carlson ejected a batter for arguing 1B Umpire Welke's check swing call, "Welke stayed at his position at first base and did nothing to help Carlson out." During Carlson's second ejection, Welke likewise remained at first base while MiLB fill-in Clint Fagan walked down to assist: "It just makes Welke look incompetent as a CC."

Tim Welke now has -8 points in the Umpire Ejection Fantasy League (-5 Previous + -3 Award = -8).
The next postseason award, Most Improved Umpire of the Year, will be released later tonight.