Billy Butler takes offense to Gimenez framing pitches, a breakdown

May 11, 2020 3.3M views 3:14

MLB Oakland Athletics 2020

What Happened

Jomboy breaks down a 2016 plate-appearance standoff between Royals DH Billy Butler and the opposing catcher, Gimenez. After Gimenez held a couple of borderline pitches to influence the umpire, Butler took offense, telling him he couldn't 'have both of them' on the inside and outside corners. The two jawed back and forth through the at-bat while the umpire repeatedly stepped in to keep the peace. Butler then ended the argument the best way possible, smoking a full-count fastball deep for a game-tying homer, screaming and tossing his bat before more words got exchanged on the way around the bases.

Why This Matters

Pitch framing is legal and expected, but it lives in a gray area of gamesmanship. Butler's complaint was about the verbal part, the catcher audibly selling calls to the umpire while also holding the glove. That crosses from craft into working the ump, and a hitter is allowed to push back the same way. What makes this clip stick is the payoff. Butler argued, reset in the box, and then tied the game, which is the rare case where the trash talk got settled on the scoreboard instead of in a shouting match. Both players gave measured postgame quotes calling it competitive heat, which is how these things usually cool off. For Butler, by 2016 a fading bat in his final big-league season, it was one last loud moment.

With 3.3M views, this breakdown ranks #40 of 1583 Jomboy videos, landing in the top 2.5% of the entire catalog.

Key Moments

Who / What Is Involved

Players: Billy Butler, Gimenez. Teams: Athletics.

Billy Butler Gimenez

Key Terms Mentioned

Umpire Controversy

this is kind of an odd and fun one 2016

Billy Butler country breakfast at the

dish for her second at-bat of the day

ball there then a nice foul tip Butler's

getting in his later years he gets that

called for a strike and he doesn't like

it

inside strike looks like it was a strike

but he's thinking of God I don't like

that I think that one's inside not a fan

this next pitch they try to go outside

and it's called a ball but Jimenez the

catcher holds it there and apparently

this is what Jimenez says I thought we

had a good pitch a cutter away going

back on the video it was probably a hair

outside I didn't say anything I just

made a sound I try not to be

disrespectful of the umpire but Butler

didn't like the way I was talking to the

umpire he said you can't have both of

them and I took offense to that Billy

Butler said oh go back dumbass Jimmy go

back Billy Butler said during the game I

thought he might have just been asking

for a little too much and it is what it

is

so Butler's saying hey if you're framing

the pitch and getting it on the inside

which was a strike

you can't frame the pitch and get on the

outside and you can't verbally let the

umpire know because now you're trying to

do gamesmanship trying to get both

pitches trying to work it and Butler

says I'll work the UMP too so here it is

after the pitch he holds it their

catcher goes and probably goes come on

man

balls outside you got the last one you

can't get both and they talk to each

other says get in the box I thought it

was a strike so Butler gets in the box

but now Jimenez is still talking he's

like okay well you know don't talk while

I'm in my backswing basically I'm trying

to focus here get in the box so he steps

back in the box cleared his head

Jimenez keeps talking to him so now

Butler's like dude he's serious I'm over

it

Jimin is like well what are you doing

what's up now the UMP has to get in the

middle cuz they're really fighting over

his love and affection and trying to get

him to sway to their side

Butler seems to make some good points

because trip is like him hmm okay I see

what you're saying hmm okay now Butler

steps back

in they go back to it curveball in the

dirt now we got a full count fastball is

gonna come and Butler just smokes it

screams bat this goes pretty deep it

goes a bunch of rows up and it tied the

game in the fourth inning but look at

this he screams and then tosses the bat

and gymnast says hey you don't pull that

[ __ ] tosses the bat Jimenez is upset

with him him and the UMP are pushing

each other back like I got this I got

this Butler's John around the bases a

little bit with everyone cuz everyone's

probably like what just happened what

was he mad about what were they talking

about the UMP separates the catcher and

Jimenez said he thought better he wasn't

gonna make a scene his family was

watching whatever tells the UMP today it

was [ __ ] up though now he's on the

bench he's talking he's making jokes

telling telling his teammates about it

and both of their quotes at the end of

the game were really like professional

like hey we were just being competitive

in a heated mellow funky Munky