Quote:
Originally Posted by lawump
Age had nothing to do with the miss. It could have happened to anyone of any age. Tim is still rated one of the top 3 balls and strike umpires in baseball on QuesTec (or whatever they call it).
He is so good, that after he umpired the one-game playoff (the 163rd game) two years ago, a coach (while wildly celebrating) actually stopped on air to congratulate Tim (by name) for calling a great game behind the plate and said he, "was a credit to his profession". That almost never happens in MLB. Not that a coach is qualified to evaluate umpires...but when MLB (via QuesTec) and the coaches and players (remember, Tim was also the highest rated umpire in MLB in the SI players' poll) rate you the highest, you must be doing something right.
It is so hard for an umpire to make the Hall of Fame for a lot of reasons...but if I had to bet on ONE current MLB umpire to be a future hall of famer, I'd put my money on him...even with that one miss.
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Although Tim didn't make the excuse, the MLB and AAA MiLB umpires I've had the pleasure to speak with say Tim had the misfortune of experiencing a brain fart on six-man mechanics at the worst possible time. You can see in the photo that his position gives him a great view of the back of R3 and screens him out from the catcher's activity. He's in the wrong spot and he didn't adjust.
A huge mistake, no doubt, but given his performance over his career, not a fatal one.
The main people b!tching are media types, rats and others who either expect only perfection from professionals or have convinced themselves they can do better.