Bryce Harper thinks umpire crossed the line during confrontation
Major League Baseball might have another umpire controversy on its hands.
Washington Nationals outfielder Bryce Harper has indicated that he felt umpire Laz Diaz crossed the line during one of their three confrontations in Friday’s 10-5 loss to the Atlanta Braves.
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Bryce indicated that Laz Diaz said something inappropriate during their exchange in Harper’s 7th inning at-bat. Didn’t want to say what Diaz said, but told reporters multiple times to ask Braves catcher Tyler Flowers. “He heard it,” Bryce said.
— Dan Kolko (@masnKolko) September 15, 2018
How the bitterness started
What was said remained a mystery because Harper elected to keep it that way. However, it was clear that Harper and Diaz were at odds throughout the game based on Diaz’s over-the-top behavior.
It wasn’t just limited to Harper’s time at the plate either. Though obviously where the animosity started. Diaz stopped the game in the fifth inning to point and yell at Harper in center field after apparently reading his body language from 300 feet away.
According to the Washington Post, Harper was unhappy about a strike call during an earlier at-bat but didn’t raise a commotion. However, when he saw a similar pitch called a ball with the Braves batting, he threw his arms up in frustration.
Is that showing up an umpire?
Perhaps.
However, stopping the game to make a show of it reflects poorly on Diaz’s judgment. Diaz then turned to Nationals manager Davey Martinez and was clearly heard saying that he needed to take care of Harper.
“He needs to cut it out,” Diaz said in reference to Harper. “You need to talk to him. You need to talk to him. You take care of him or I will, I guarantee you that.”
What does that even mean and why should an umpire be throwing around such words?
Understandably, Martinez was not pleased with Diaz’s handling of the situation during the game or after. Here are his postgame comments, per a Federal Baseball tweet.
“I say this all the time, and I’m not going to make comments on balls and strikes there, but umpires are supposed to be non-confrontational, they’re supposed to uphold the peace on the baseball field. You know, for me, I think MLB needs to take a look at that, that’s all I’m going to say.”
Laz Diaz keeps chirping
From there, it managed to get uglier for Diaz.
When Harper ran off the field between innings, Diaz walked up the third base line toward him, and started hollering at him. Harper kept his head down and went into the dugout, ignoring Diaz’s screams. Umpires do not generally chase down players like that, and Manager Dave Martinez felt the whole thing was out of line. But the trouble did not stop there.
Bryce Harper keeps his cool
Harper’s next at-bat in the seventh inning was the third and final act in this ridiculous drama. Diaz seemingly tried to bait Harper into another confrontation with an egregious strike call.
In past seasons, the call may have pushed Harper over the edge. He says he’s focused this season on controlling his emotions and avoiding ejections. It seems that renewed focus is working and probably helped Harper stay in Friday’s game.
What isn’t working for baseball fans is Diaz turning a fairly significant game in September into an “ump show.” The year is 2018, and still not one fan has paid to see an umpire.
MLB is already busy reviewing Tom Hallion’s strange behavior at the end of a Marlins-Mets game on Thursday. It sounds like this case is worth reviewing too, especially if there were some inappropriate words exchanged.
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