It wouldn’t be Opening Day without a blatant reminder that Major League umpires hate fun. A balloon didn’t stand a chance in the path of umpire Laz Diaz.
During Thursday’s opener between the Giants and Yankees, a stray balloon made its way onto the field and floated around towards home plate.
Diaz could have just handed the balloon to the bat boy, and everyone could have just moved on with the game. But Diaz had a different take on the Ump Show. He picked up the balloon (after initially struggling to corral it) and popped it right there with a very aggressive grip. And, of course, he missed the call on the next pitch.
Umpire confirms he hates fun then he makes a terrible strike three call pic.twitter.com/S4uDDtu97D
— Talkin' Yanks (@TalkinYanks) March 30, 2023
I love how Yankee Stadium booed Diaz for popping the balloon. Like, was that really necessary? It made the bat boy’s job harder because now he had to pick up the debris.
But man, if you’re going to pop a balloon with your bare hands, you at least need to call balls and strikes accurately. Diaz did not. Josh Donaldson was called out on strikes on a pitch that missed the plate outside, and he understandably wasn’t pleased.
MLB fans were also not kind to Diaz after that sequence.