Cardinals manager Oliver Marmol says umpire C.B. Bucknor has 'zero class' after refusing handshake
The bad blood between St. Louis Cardinals manager Oliver Marmol and MLB umpire C.B. Bucknor continued Saturday when Bucknor refused to shake hands during the Cardinals' spring training season opener.
Prior to the Cardinals' 3-2 loss to the Washington Nationals, Marmol gathered at home plate with Nationals manager Davey Martinez for a lineup card exchange with the officiating crew. But the meeting quickly went awry.
"I went to go shake C.B.’s hand," Marmol said after the game. "He didn’t extend his."
Saturday's game marked the first meeting between Marmol and Bucknor since the two got into a fiery dispute after Marmol's ejection in Arizona in August.
"I went into that game pretty certain of my thoughts on him as an umpire," Marmol continued. "They weren’t very good and it shows his lack of class as a man. I chose my words wisely. I just don’t think he’s good at his job and it just showed his lack of class as a man.”
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On Aug. 21, Marmol was ejected after arguing a strike called against third baseman Nolan Arenado. Marmol approached Bucknor at home plate afterward and the confrontation escalated to a screaming match, with the then0first-year manager and veteran umpire questioning each other's credibility. Marmol was eventually restrained and escorted off the field.
"I didn't like the smirk when I got out there," Marmol said at the time. "And then he questioned my time in the league, so I returned the favor and questioned his time in the league."
CB Bucknor and Oliver Marmol got into a HEATED argument over this strike call pic.twitter.com/uTkYxc8BET
— Jomboy Media (@JomboyMedia) August 21, 2022
Despite the altercation, Marmol said he "went out to home to shake his hand" on Saturday as a sign of "respect" for the umpire, but "he didn’t want to. He has zero class.”
“It’s not an olive branch. It's just respect," the second-year manager said. "You can have disagreements. You still go to home plate. Any time I get thrown out of a game, I will go to home plate the next day for that very purpose. It’s unfortunate."
Marmol did shake hands with the other three umpires – Ron Kulpa, Angel Hernandez and Carlos Torres – before the game.
Contributing: The Associated Press
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Cardinals' Oliver Marmol: Umpire refuses handshake, has 'zero class'
