Not even an especially bad call could slow down Zack Wheeler on Saturday.
There was another bad miss by a home plate umpire in Wheeler’s start for the Philadelphia Phillies against the Chicago White Sox, as the right-hander threw what was clearly a strike to Korey Lee, over the heart of the plate and only slightly up in the strike zone.
But home plate umpire Charlie Ramos called it a ball, much to the astonishment of not only the Phillies’ broadcasters, but the White Sox crew, as well.
The call came in the top of the third and after the pitch, with the camera showing Phillies right fielder Nick Castellanos raising his glove, Phillies’ broadcaster Tom McCarthy said, “Nick Castellanos is wondering, like everyone else, where that pitch was.”
His partner, Ben Davis, added: “Inexplicable.”
More noteworthy was the reaction of the White Sox broadcasters Steve Stone and John Schriffen, who debated how the pitch wasn’t a strike, but they agreed the scuffling team “will definitely take” the bad call.
It didn’t impact the outcome of the game, as Wheeler took a shutout in the eighth inning of the Phillies’ 9-5 win.
The call occurred on the same day as the Orioles-Royals game started on a rough note, with a poor call by home plate umpire Ryan Blakney on the first pitch of the game.
Kansas City’s Cole Ragans threw a fastball down the middle to Baltimore’s Gunnar Henderson. Blakney, though, called it a ball.
Ryan Lefebvre, calling the game for the Royals on Bally Sports, said, “Fastball is right down the middle for ball one.”
His partner, ex-MLBer Rex Hudler, responded with a laugh, “What? My goodness. Not on pitch one.”
Ragans ended up knocked out in the second inning of a 9-7 loss.