VIDEO: Michigan's Jimmy Obertop Tossed for Swiping Home Plate Dirt With Bat in All-Time Ump Show Moment
By Mark Powell
The MLB season hasn't even started yet, and we have our worst ump show of 2020. Shockingly enough, this is NOT Angel Hernandez. In Michigan's game against Vanderbilt on Friday night, shown here on MLB Network, Wolverines slugger Jimmy Obertop was tossed for swiping his bat near home plate. To make matters worse, his back was turned, as Obertop didn't even have the opportunity to explain himself.
this kid really got tossed in the 9th inning for ...uh, swiping the dirt with his bat after a called strike? pic.twitter.com/n1wRlPp2zt
— Christian D'Andrea (@TrainIsland) February 15, 2020
Umpires are a necessity of the game, but it's moments like these that make us want to replace them with electronic strike zones. It's simple: baseball is about the players, not those who call balls and strikes. This college baseball ump, who will remain unnamed for a reason, turned a solid, ranked matchup into a reality show. Thank you.
Michigan’s Jimmy Obertop just got tossed for “showing up” the home plate umpire. That was ridiculous … #umpshow
— Kendall Rogers (@KendallRogers) February 15, 2020
Surely, this man will receive some sort of suspension as a result of the viral infamy he's about to live in for the next few weeks, if not longer.
We can't all be heroes.