The New York Yankees watched a 3-0 lead slip away in last night’s loss to the Astros, falling 8-7 to their longtime rivals in a game remembered less for the action on the field and more for the man behind the plate. According to Umpire Scorecards, a website that evaluates every umpire’s performance, home plate umpire Brian Walsh’s performance awarded the Astros an extra 1.4 runs, far and away the most lopsided performance of any umpire on Wednesday night.
Most of Walsh’s struggles came during the bottom of the eighth inning of the contest. According to Umpire Scorecards, Walsh missed numerous strike calls in favor of the Astros against Yankee pitcher Devin Williams. However, the most consequential of the calls made by Walsh will not be reflected on the scorecard. After Williams was replaced by flamethrower Camilo Doval, Doval was immediately called for a balk, allowing the Astros to extend their lead to 8-4. He then retired Yordan Alvarez on a ground ball, a sequence that, without the controversial balk, would have left the Yankees trailing by three instead of four.
In the top of the ninth, the Yankees cut the Astros’ lead from four to just one, when Cody Bellinger connected on a two-out, three-run home run. Following Bellinger, Jazz Chisholm was the next batter. Chisholm worked the count full before being punched out on a borderline outside pitch that appeared to just clip the zone. However, while that call did end the game, it did not signal the end of the drama.
Many social media posts have circulated images of Walsh in Red Sox gear, allegedly taken from his Facebook account. Both Aaron Boone and Williams, who were ejected from the game, appeared to have plenty to say to Walsh as they left the field. Jazz Chisholm, who made the final out and has a reputation for challenging calls, was visibly frustrated as well.
The Yankees and Astros will face off in the rubber game of their three-game set Thursday night at 7:40 PM EST.
