There have been a lot of bad calls in baseball this year, from terrible strikeouts to umpires forgetting to reset the pitch clock and misremembering the count. And now, add this 3-1 strike call from umpire Bill Miller to the running tally of dreadful missteps this season.
On Sunday, Pittsburgh Pirates third baseman Ke’Bryan Hayes was facing Atlanta Braves pitcher A.J. Minter in the top of the eighth inning, with the home team holding a 5-2 lead. On the 3-1 count, it seemed as if Hayes was set to go to first on a walk thanks to a ball outside the zone. However, Miller called it a strike, keeping Hayes in the batter’s box on a pitch that was definitely not a strike.
See for yourself!
What pic.twitter.com/Dy7uEQ3Y3m
— Platinum Ke’Bryan (@PlatinumKey13) September 10, 2023
Not only that, the missed 3-1 strike call led to Hayes striking out mere moments later, ending the inning for the Pirates and cutting off any chance of an eighth inning comeback.
After the game, Hayes took to Twitter to express his frustrations with Miller’s call, even stating that the umpire brushed off his attempts to hold him accountable.
Some umpires really don’t care. 3-1 call not even close. I hold him accountable after the game walking off the field and his response is “🤷🏽♂️ I gave you a chance to hit a homerun” that tells me you don’t care at all. No accountability. Bring the ABS please @MLB pic.twitter.com/sgncakv8v8
— KeBryan Hayes (@KeBryanHayes) September 10, 2023
We wouldn’t be surprised to see a fine tossed Hayes’ way for his candid comments about Miller’s call and umpires as a whole. MLB fans, on the other hand, appreciated how honest Hayes was in his assessment of Miller’s call.
Ke'Bryan just jumped up in my book. Umps gotta be put on blast just like players when they screw up https://t.co/9jXZMKX1gJ
— Matt Gajtka (GITE-kah) (@MattGajtka) September 11, 2023
You know things are bad when (Ke'Bryan) Hayes is putting out tweets like this. He's about as cool as they come. https://t.co/eXWiPcTRrJ
— Connor Williams ⚾ (@Wins_Williams) September 10, 2023
This is why Ke’Bryan Hayes is good for baseball. Absolute legend. https://t.co/A64QqraUil
— /inny 🅱️uffone (@Veno202) September 10, 2023
“I gave you a chance to hit a home run” is crazy https://t.co/EmXUwz8OoS
— Aram Leighton (@AramLeighton8) September 10, 2023
Finally. Need more players to start doing this https://t.co/SXuczgAQ0f
— Sam Dekker (@dekker) September 10, 2023
Automated ball-strike system. Now. https://t.co/RXW7lf7mO9
— Platinum Ke’Bryan (@PlatinumKey13) September 10, 2023
Ke’Bryan Hayes telling us how he really feels about the questionable strike call that went against him today. Refreshing to hear from someone who is usually pretty laid back https://t.co/luRa5dgQgN
— That Sports Guy (@Jason_Shetler) September 10, 2023
Over time, more and more players will welcome our 🤖 overlords. https://t.co/R4kguboAMR
— Owen Poindexter (@owenpoindexter) September 10, 2023
Preach! https://t.co/hj0Smgf1fZ
— Joe Heim (@joe4braves) September 11, 2023
