According to KBO insider Daniel Kim, the umpire—who initially ruled a batter out on a swinging third strike—affirmed his out call following a subsequent conversation with Lotte Giants catcher Bo-geun that was captured by Korean broadcast MBC's microphones and, according to Kim, "went viral. He had to go," suggesting the umpire's verbal remarks to a player may have contributed to KBO's decision as much as his on-field judgment call.
To be clear, video indicates the umpire stuck with his initial "out" call and did not change his call as a result of his conversation with the catcher. Replays indicate the baseball appeared to contact the bat prior to touching the ground and ultimately entering the catcher's mitt.
Unlike Major League Baseball's MLBUA umpires' union or Minor League's AMLU association, KBO umpires are not part of a union and do not enjoy collective bargaining power nor protection.
KBO reporter Dan Kurtz indicated, "As far as I know, the umps are considered individual contractors."
In the United States, although umpires and referees for youth, high school, and most college leagues and conferences are considered independent contractors, MLB and MiLB umpires are employees of the leagues in which they work.
Nonetheless, this might be a good time to refer to our October 2019 review of umpiring and social media: word choice applies to what an official says both off and on the field.
Related Post: Rob Drake's Twitter War, Umpires and Social Media (10/24/19).
Video as follows:
Alternate Link: KBO Demotes 6th Umpire in Less Than Two Weeks (CCS)
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