"No excuse for calls like that to be missed at this level” - Rangers fans dumbfounded as Jonah Heim called out on bizarre infield play
Texas Rangers slugger Jonah Heim was involved in a questionable call in Wednesday's afternoon matchup with the Tampa Bay Rays. He hit a missile to Jose Caballero at shortstop, who seemed to have bobbled the catch.
However, the umpiring crew deemed that Caballero caught the ball and lost it on the transfer. The out was upheld as the play in question is not reviewable.
To the umpires' credit, it was a bang-bang play and hard to call in the heat of the moment. You would need to slow the play down to see if Caballero actually caught the ball or not.
The call on Jonah Heim had Rangers fans incredibly frustrated. Runners on first and second with one out is a whole different situation than a runner on second with two outs. Fans want to see the league implement replay reviews on plays like these.
"Are you ever going to hold your umpires accountable MLB? This is absolutely pathetic. No excuse for calls like that to be missed at this level. That's embarrassing" one fan posted.
"Have the hiring standards changed that much for umpires? Good grief. All calls probably need to be reviewable now" another fan posted.
Umpires have been a talking point already during this young season. Fans are tired of their inconsistencies, and the call for robot umpires has never been stronger.
Despite the frustrating call, Jonah Heim and the Rangers prevailed
Despite the aggravating call on Jonah Heim in the ninth inning, the Texas Rangers beat the Tampa Bay Rays 4-1. They now sit at 4-2 on the year, tied with the Los Angeles Angels at the top of the AL West.
Three Texas hitters had multiple hits on the afternoon, helping their club to victory. Corey Seager, Marcus Semien, and Leody Tavaras had two hits each, with Seager muscling out his first homer of the year.
The pitching for Texas on Wednesday was outstanding. Nathan Eovaldi got the start and went seven strong innings, giving up no runs on four hits while striking out eight batters.
David Robertson and Jose Leclerc came out of the bullpen and kept the lead for their squad. The two combined to go two innings, giving up one run on four hits.
The Rangers will now prepare for their in-state rivalry against the Houston Astros. Both teams square off for a four-game series starting on Friday.