MLB Umpire Angel Hernandez Retires After 34 Seasons

Longtime Major League Baseball umpire Angel Hernandez will reportedly retire on Tuesday, according to USA Today. Hernandez has been in the MLB since 1991 and has umpired throughout the major leagues since 2000.

Angel Hernandez, a longtime Major League Baseball umpire, will reportedly retire on Tuesday, according to USA Today. Hernandez, 62, has been an umpire in the MLB for 34 seasons.

Hernandez joined the MLB ranks in 1991 as a National League umpire and has been throughout the majors since 2000. He has umpired three All-Star Games, 12 ALDS, eight ALCS and two World Series.

Hernandez has grown a reputation as one of the worst umpires in the majors, constantly going viral in recent years for some horrendous calls. Most recently, last month Hernandez came under fire for making, quite literally, some of the worst calls the sport has ever seen.

Hernandez called Texas Rangers rookie Wyatt Langford out on strikes on three straight sliders that were way out of the zone; the called third strike missed the plate by 6.78 inches, according to the Umpire Auditor on X. Of the last 53,000 called third strikes up to that point, it was one was the farthest off the plate, according to Codify, leaving the game announcers speechless.

In that game, Hernandez called seven pitches strikes that had been balls by three-plus inches. According to Umpire Scorecards, of 55 called strikes that day, 12 were actually balls, and some were egregious. That's a 78% hit rate, which is much lower than the 88% average.

Last year, another viral moment saw him rank dead-last in correct-call rate at some point in August. This season, Umpire Scorecards has him ranked 67th out of 85 umps.

Cy Young Award winner C.C. Sabathia once blasted Hernandez, saying that he should not be umpiring postseason games. "He's absolutely terrible … it's amazing how he's getting a job to umpire in these playoff games," he said in 2018.

As umpires have been under the microscope much more closely, MLB commissioner Rob Manfred said late last week that there is a "growing consensus" to using an automated balls and strikes system in the majors, which has been implemented in the minor leagues in some capacity since 2019.

Hernandez once accused the league of "manipulating the performance of Mr. Hernandez and other minority umpires," which in turn has prevented more minority umpires from becoming crew chiefs. In March 2021, Hernandez lost a lawsuit against Major League Baseball that alleged racial discrimination.

Despite his controversial reputation, Hernandez has had a long and successful career. He is one of the most experienced umpires in the MLB and has been a part of some of the biggest moments in baseball history.

Hernandez's retirement will be a significant loss for the MLB. He is a veteran umpire who has brought a unique perspective to the game. He will be missed by fans, players, and fellow umpires alike.