Ángel Hernández, a longtime Major League Baseball umpire, calls it a career.
Hernández, who has long been one of the more controversial umpires in baseball history, will officially retire from the league this week, according to Bob Nightengale of USA Today and ESPN’s Jeff Passan. MLB is expected to make the announcement official on Tuesday. Hernández and the league have reportedly been negotiating the terms of his retirement over the past two weeks.
Hernández last scored in the Chicago White Sox’ 3-2 victory over the Cleveland Guardians on May 9. The 62-year-old was replaced in his team by referee Jacob Metz.
Hernández was first hired as a full-time umpire in the MLB in 1993. He quickly became one of the most poorly regarded umpires in the league, especially in recent years, due to what many have seen as egregious missed calls on the field.
against MLB after also filing a racial discrimination lawsuit in 2017. Hernandez, who was born in Cuba, claimed he was passed over for a promotion to crew chief and not chosen to compete in the World Series because of his race. Hernández – who last played a World Series game in 2005 and a League Championship Series in 2016 – .
While arguing the case, in which he believes that Hernández did not do his job and missed calls on the field at important moments.
Hernández missed all but ten games last season due to a back injury. According to Umpire Auditor, he missed a whopping 161 calls in those 10 games.
Angel Hernandez finished the regular season as the lowest rated referee (min. 10 games).
He didn’t get his start until August due to a back injury, but he racked up 161 bad calls in 10 games, including the lowest-rated game.
His season may be over, but may our memories live on. pic.twitter.com/or3hweE1yL
— Referee Auditor (@UmpireAuditor) October 2, 2023
One of those games he worked in September actually led to Philadelphia Phillies star Bryce Harper being ejected. Harper then launched his helmet into the stands behind the dugout. Harper charged at Hernández all the way to the third base line before eventually being pulled back and walking off the field.
“Ángel is in the middle of something again. It’s the same story every year, the same thing,” Harper. “I’ll probably get fined again because I’m right.”
While Hernández hasn’t been on the field much lately, for better or worse, his time in the league is now officially over.
