C.B. Bucknor Is the Spawn of Satan
After the NBA Finals, it seems that the fashionable thing to do these days is bashing the officiating. Well, far be it for me to refrain from jumping on the bandwagon. As I watched the first two games of the 'Stros-Tigers series, I couldn't help but tumble to two indisputable universal truths. First, the Astros bullpen may well be the worst collection of "talent" this side of "Battle of the Network Reality Stars." Second, C.B. Bucknor hates the Astros with every fiber of his being.
On Monday, it was the ridiculous ejection of Lance Berkman (followed by the understandable ejection of Phil Garner). Yesterday, it was the worst strike zone I've ever seen. When Houston was hitting, pitches that nearly hit Astro batters were called strikes. I clearly recall seeing Burke, Ensberg, and Everett dodging inside pitches only to see them called strikes by Bucknor. But I've got to give Bucknor credit; he was consistent in his screwjob of the Astros. When Clemens was on the hill, Bucknor seemingly refused to call any strikes that were not fouls or swing-and-a-miss. It was outrageous. So outrageous that Clemens completely lost his cool after Bucknor called a clear strike a ball in the 7th inning. Garner, who had already come out to "advise" Clemens earlier in the game, ran out to pull the Katy Rocket in lieu of him getting tossed. From there, Dan Wheeler ran in to predictably blow open the game, with a little help from Adam "Mr. Defense" Everett's throwing error.
The umpiring was so bad that when Burke fouled a fastball off Bucknor's facemask in the 9th, I just knew that he was going down unless he put the ball in play. It was obvious that Bucknor couldn't wait to call him out. And sure enough, Burke went down looking on a low "strike" to end the game.
I don't know how the Astros or the City of Houston wronged C.B. Bucknor. My guess is that someone at the Hilton forgot to put a mint on his pillow one night. But unless Drayton McLane tortured one of his family members, there is no justifiable excuse for his burning hatred of the team. In that same vein, there's no justifiable excuse for an Astros reserve (I vote Orlando Palmeiro) not waiting outside the umpires' locker room before today's game to beat Bucknor senseless.
On Monday, it was the ridiculous ejection of Lance Berkman (followed by the understandable ejection of Phil Garner). Yesterday, it was the worst strike zone I've ever seen. When Houston was hitting, pitches that nearly hit Astro batters were called strikes. I clearly recall seeing Burke, Ensberg, and Everett dodging inside pitches only to see them called strikes by Bucknor. But I've got to give Bucknor credit; he was consistent in his screwjob of the Astros. When Clemens was on the hill, Bucknor seemingly refused to call any strikes that were not fouls or swing-and-a-miss. It was outrageous. So outrageous that Clemens completely lost his cool after Bucknor called a clear strike a ball in the 7th inning. Garner, who had already come out to "advise" Clemens earlier in the game, ran out to pull the Katy Rocket in lieu of him getting tossed. From there, Dan Wheeler ran in to predictably blow open the game, with a little help from Adam "Mr. Defense" Everett's throwing error.
The umpiring was so bad that when Burke fouled a fastball off Bucknor's facemask in the 9th, I just knew that he was going down unless he put the ball in play. It was obvious that Bucknor couldn't wait to call him out. And sure enough, Burke went down looking on a low "strike" to end the game.
I don't know how the Astros or the City of Houston wronged C.B. Bucknor. My guess is that someone at the Hilton forgot to put a mint on his pillow one night. But unless Drayton McLane tortured one of his family members, there is no justifiable excuse for his burning hatred of the team. In that same vein, there's no justifiable excuse for an Astros reserve (I vote Orlando Palmeiro) not waiting outside the umpires' locker room before today's game to beat Bucknor senseless.
posted by Anonymous | 9:05 AM
1 Comments:
C.B. Bucknor is a complete disaster. He seems to have a vendetta against the sport itself, not just individual teams, though. His umpiring style combines the essential qualities of inconsistency, inaccuracy and irritability. I still think Garner's the worst arguing manager in the game, and that alone should lead to his firing.
Post a Comment
<< Home