Years of disagreements cause JP Crawford to lash out on umpire, a breakdown
What Happened
Seattle Mariners shortstop J.P. Crawford steps up to the plate in the bottom of the first inning, eager to set the tone for his team. The first pitch from the opposing pitcher is called a strike by umpire Doug Eddings, but Crawford immediately disagrees, believing it was outside the strike zone. The next pitch is correctly called a ball, further frustrating Crawford. As the at-bat continues, Crawford appears increasingly agitated by Eddings' calls. After striking out on a pitch he felt was also outside the zone, Crawford makes his way to the dugout, visibly upset with the umpire's decision-making. The tension escalates in the fifth inning when Crawford comes up with a runner in scoring position and two outs. Another close pitch is called a strike, and Crawford voices his displeasure, telling Eddings "it's not a strike." After a few more questionable calls, Crawford loses his composure, loudly exclaiming "Your zone's been wrong every game. That's horse shit." Mariners manager Scott Servais rushes out to defend his player, arguing that Eddings has been "bad all night, especially to him." Servais makes a passionate case that the umpire's strike zone has been inconsistent, pointing to a specific pitch from the first at-bat that was "about this far outside." Eddings ultimately ejects Crawford from the game, unable to diffuse the situation. In his post-game comments, Crawford expresses his long-standing frustration with Eddings' officiating, stating that "every game your zone is like this." A deeper analysis reveals that over the course of their nine previous matchups, Eddings has made several perceived missed calls against Crawford, contributing to the player's growing animosity towards the umpire. The heated exchange between Crawford and Eddings underscores the intensity and high stakes of Major League Baseball, where players and umpires are constantly at odds over the interpretation of the rules. highlights the importance of consistent and fair officiating, as well as the challenges faced by both players and umpires in navigating the complex dynamics of the game.
Full Transcript
Click timestamps to jump to that momentJ.P. Crawford leading off this breakdown is brought to you by Shady Rays.
It's the first pitch of the game.
Let's get things in order.
It's outside.
It's called a strike.
J.P. is like, oh, the next pitch, way outside, correctly called a ball.
The next one, high above.
Oh, come on, Doug.
Time, time.
Let's make you think about that.
And then he strikes out, chasing inside.
That was the first inning, his first at bat.
Now we're jumping to the fifth inning.
He's got a runner in scoring position.
There's two outs.
That pitch, strike, outside, but caught the edge.
He can live with that.
0-1, next pitch, high, strike.
Oh, man.
God damn it.
You could actually hear him very faintly in the audio say, it's not a strike.
Let's go.
Time.
Okay, time.
Batter is called time.
He's making me think about what I've done.
He's spitting in his hands.
He's disgusted.
I'm disgusted.
We're all disgusted.
The 0-2 pitch.
High again.
Strike.
God damn it.
You suck.
It's not a strike.
That's bullshit.
Your zone's been wrong every game.
Hey, it's my zone today.
Every game.
That's horse shit.
God damn it.
He's upset.
His zone's been wrong every game.
That's what he said.
Every game.
Deep dive into that in a second.
His manager came out to make sure.
He got away.
And then his manager's going to fight for him.
And he says, first at bat, they're not even close, Doug.
First at bat's about this far outside.
First pitch of the game.
Oh, I'm telling you.
You've been bad all night.
Especially to him.
Been bad all night?
You're getting run over this?
You're getting run over this?
I've, I've, I've, I've, I've.
I understand.
Who said anything about me not looking at you?
When I've been calling them for both sides and you're actually trying to get run for this?
What?
Service is like, uh, yeah, you've been bad.
So then he just throws the ball in.
I saw what JP Crawford said.
He said, every game your zone is like this.
So I thought JP Crawford doesn't like Doug Eddings.
He doesn't like batting when he's the umpire.
I went and found every single pitch that's been thrown when JP Crawford is the hitter and Doug Eddings is the umpire.
There have been nine games.
In those nine games.
Per Baseball Savant and the pitch tracking, there have been nine balls that Doug Eddings called a strike.
And there have been four strikes that he called a ball.
So that, JP's right.
That's worse.
It's not terrible though.
But then I went and looked at all the pitches on the edges and all the pitches that JP Crawford kind of reacted to.
So I'm calling these perceived missed calls in the mind of JP Crawford.
And that jumps all the way up to 23 perceived missed calls.
From Doug Eddings, JP Crawford.
So he totally thinks that Doug Eddings just has it out for him and always up when he's up.
Out of the nine games, eight of them include a perceived missed call from Doug Eddings in the brain of JP Crawford.
And 15 out of the 39 at bats.
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