Abbi Murray
Baseball player Kyle Schwarber lost his head on Sunday night (24 April) during a match between the Philadelphia Phillies and Milwaukee Brewers.
The Phillies star was visibly disappointed after umpire Angel Hernandez called a strikeout in the ninth inning of the game.
However, tensions reached a boiling point after Schwarber violently threw his bat and helmet to the floor and appeared to get up in Hernadez’s face.
After being ejected, the left fielder appeared to leave and return to the pitch a number of times, evidently letting anger get the better of him.
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Appearing from the dugout, he shouted ‘all night!’ and ‘both sides!’ – implying that the umpire had been fair to neither team that night.
It wasn’t long before Phillies manager Joe Girardi took over the argument in a more controlled manner, still pleading Schwarber’s case.
After the game, the Phillies player said: “Everyone kind of saw what was going on. I'm not here to bury anyone, but it wasn't very good.
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“You wish ... I don't know how to really say it. It just wasn't very good.
“Guys were doing a really good job tonight of not saying much. It just got to me to where I was going to stick up for some other guys.”
ESPN’s Sunday Night Baseball weighed in on the ordeal after the match, appearing to sympathise with Schwarber’s frustration.
“Schwarber is speaking for both sides tonight,” Karl Ravech said.
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“We saw a lot of those demonstrations, none like that. We saw them as players went back to the bench.”
Analyst David Cone added: “I’m surprised it took this long for somebody to have that kind of an outburst.”
The game lasted just two hours and 49 minutes, ending 1-0 with the Philadelphia Phillies losing out to the Milwaukee Brewers.
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Milwaukee player Omar Narvaez also questioned Hernandez's refereeing skills, telling reporters: “I’m not going to say he was good, because he wasn’t.
“At least he was consistent for both teams. Sometimes you’ve got to adjust and don’t leave the decision to the umpire.”
Twitters users also seemed to back Schwarber, with one writing: "Is there anyone worse at their job than Angel Hernandez?"
"Kyle Schwarber is the voice of America," another added.
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"Umpires have been atrocious all season long, all across the league. Angel Hernandez is no exception," a third remarked.
Another wrote, "Kyle Schwarber is pretty much every baseball fan/player right now who's ever had the curse of dealing with Angel Hernandez as their home-plate umpire."
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