Padres Slam Umpire for Missed Call to End Game

J.P. Hoornstra | Jun 7, 2024

Jun 2, 2024; Kansas City, Missouri, USA; San Diego Padres manager Mike Shildt (8) stands on field against the Kansas City Royals prior to a game at Kauffman Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Denny Medley-USA TODAY Sports / Denny Medley-USA TODAY Sports

The first signs of discontent were audible from the broadcast booth.

"Brutal! Horrible! Took the bat right out of the kid's hands! Wasn't even close!" Mark Grant exclaimed as Jake Cronenworth took a called strike three to end Thursday's game against the Arizona Diamondbacks. "You gotta be shaving me!"

"BRUTAL! HORRIBLE! TOOK THE BAT RIGHT OUT OF THE KID'S HANDS! WASN'T EVEN CLOSE! YOU GOTTA BE SHAVING ME!" - Padres color commentator Mark Grant after a brutal strike 3 call to end a 1-run game vs the D-Backs ⚾️ 🎙️👮‍♂️ pic.twitter.com/HT5447SD6v

— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) June 7, 2024

Down on the field, Padres manager Mike Shildt got in home plate umpire Erich Bacchus's face and argued the call before walking away. Needless to say, no one on the San Diego Padres' side was happy about the ending to the team's fifth straight loss.

Mike Shildt expressed frustration with the final called strike against Jake Cronenworth, if Kyle Higashioka could get more time behind the plate and if he called for the two sacrifice bunts tonight: pic.twitter.com/kMmbl8VtbE

— 97.3 The Fan (@973TheFanSD) June 7, 2024

“You’d like to have a chance to actually end the game on your own terms,” Shildt told reporters after the game. “I respect the umpiring profession highly, and I don’t complain a lot. But I got guys busting their asses all night. I got a guy [Manny Machado] with a little mild strain with his hip flexor, but he shows up and is willing to take an at-bat, try to win us a ballgame. I got guys playing their asses off all over the field, competing their tails off. Croney is in a dogfight there at the end against their closer. We get a guy on base, Pro works a walk, steals a bag, gets a chance to tie the game. …”

The Padres' losing streak has been full of game's like Thursday's. The streak began Sunday with a one-run, walk-off loss in the bottom of the ninth inning in Kansas City. The Padres lost three straight games in Anaheim by a combined four runs.

The series opener against the Diamondbacks at Petco Park was tied 3-3 going into the ninth inning. Eventually, one of these close games will go the Padres' way, but it hasn't happened yet.

"It was a ball,” Cronenworth said, via the San Diego Union-Tribune. “I don’t even know what to say. He took the bat out of my hands at the end of the game. It sucks. It comes down to his decision.”

According to the Statcast tracking of Paul Sewald's fateful fastball, Cronenworth was right:

“You know, listen man, you can’t end a game with a ball six inches off the plate and borderline high,” Shildt told reporters. “I mean, listen, that’s just not acceptable. We lost. I take ownership of that. Don’t want to blame anybody, but that’s a bad way to end the ballgame.”