I know Judge is in a bit of a slump, but I've watched every game since the All Star break and it seems every pitcher has figured out that if you throw the ball "low and away" (including out of the strike zone) - the umpires call it strike three.
Personally, it seems to me that the strike zone being used on judge goes from his ankles to his shoulders and six inches outside of home plate. And worse, every pitcher has figured out that the umps will call it a strike if it's low and outside the strike zone. Seems to be the favorite target for pitchers all the sudden.
I think that has a lot to do with his hitting lately. Early in the season, they were making pitchers throw real strikes and now (maybe because of his size), the umps have a different strike zone to use against him.
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Girardi should be fighting this battle. Judge is a good kid and won't complain.
Girardi should be fighting this battle. Judge is a good kid and won't complain.
I agree. Joe needs to challenge these umpires. It's part of his job. Billy Martin or Earl Weaver would have been all over those bad calls
I agree that he chases those low and away balls. But I also believe he's figured out that the umps are going to call it a strike anyway so he can stand there with the bat on his shoulders and let it get called strike, or take a hack at it.
I agree with the others who think Girardi should get off his ass and go after the umps. So what if he gets tossed a few times. It needs to be corrected because Judge is such a nice guy he'll never argue with the ump.
I think it's going to come to a head at some point and Joe will get off his ass and start a war with umpire association. There are "Umpire Auditors" with film clips that track and rate umpires. I've seen replays with the overhead cameras showing a ball literally 6 inches off the plate being called "strike" against Judge. Those boxes that show where the ball went on television are bullshit because it shows where the ball hit the glove (that is usually pulled in), not where it passed over the plate. It's not a rectangular window, it's a three dimensional rectangular cube. An outside pitch curving in may have "nicked" the corner when viewed as a plate window because of where the catcher caught it (or where it looked like he caught it after pulling it into an advantageous position), but it doesn't tell the whole picture. You need overhead cameras as well as horizontal cameras to see where the ball clearly was. I notice when there is an exceptionally bad call, the televised games rarely show the overhead camera so as not to cause outrage.
Regardless, according to the "Umpire Auditor", umps get it right 88% of the time. With Judge, it's more like 40% of the time. And it's working well for opposing pitchers who love the new strike zone personally adjusted for Judge.
Time for Joe to not just rock the boat, but tip the boat over and bring it to the attention of the league. Because this is flat out bullshit. Pitchers will get their share of strikeouts on Judge even if the umps don't help them out. But that low and outside the strike zone called "strike" needs to be made into an issue!
Judge doesn't bitch. Smart.
I agree he is getting a somewhat raw deal on the calls. And he is his own worst enemy chasing obvious balls. Aaron Boone has said the past two nights that his mechanics are off as well as his timing. He believes a correction is coming sooner rather than later. Even the homer run last night he missed. He has missed more hittable pitches than he has gotten bad calls and even then the bad calls come after he had missed a very hittable pitch. The oppo field hits are a good sign. Many time players get out of slumps going with the pitch to the opposite field.
Judge doesn't bitch. Smart.
I agree he is getting a somewhat raw deal on the calls. And he is his own worst enemy chasing obvious balls. Aaron Boone has said the past two nights that his mechanics are off as well as his timing. He believes a correction is coming sooner rather than later. Even the homer run last night he missed. He has missed more hittable pitches than he has gotten bad calls and even then the bad calls come after he had missed a very hittable pitch. The oppo field hits are a good sign. Many time players get out of slumps going with the pitch to the opposite field.
Disagree. It is Joe's job to protect his players. Joe needs to go bat shit crazy the next time the ump takes the bat out of Judge's hands. An ESPN highlight film. The umps need to be publically shamed because they are too lazy to adjust their strike zone to this kids size.
And Girardi did get tossed from a game when he started up on an umpire after Gardner got punched out on a ball way outside and the first pitch to Judge right after was a low and away faux strike.
If you expected him to keep hitting the way he was hitting, you were dreaming. In AA, he hit .284 and struck out 30% of the time. In his second stint in AAA, he hit .278 and struck out 30% of the time. So far in the majors, he is hitting .289 and striking out 33% of the time, which is to be expected because after all, it is the major leagues. As it is, his babip is .383 which would top any season in the minors. If that comes back to his level in the minors, he will probably end up at .270-.275.
If before the season, you were told Judge would hit .270, 45 HR and drive in 100 RBI's would you have thought the umps were hurting him? No, you would have taken that and run.
It doesn't seem like the umps are hurting him at all. He's just come back to Earth after starting off in the stratosphere.
I understand that all players have to figure out each umpires' strike zones as it differs from ump to ump. So it hurts and helps both teams somewhat equally. Some umps have a postage sized strike zone and others have a strike zone the size of a smart car. I can't help but notice that when the particular ump of the day has the postage-sized zone, it's a high scoring game. And when it's a very liberal strike zone, we get to see no hitters.
Regardless, I am convinced that the umps have a unique strike zone for Judge. Maybe because of his enormous size and long arms. Or maybe they feel it is their duty to stop a rookie from turning into the next Babe Ruth, but it isn't fair to do that to any hitter.
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Disagree. It is Joe's job to protect his players. Joe needs to go bat shit crazy the next time the ump takes the bat out of Judge's hands. An ESPN highlight film. The umps need to be publically shamed because they are too lazy to adjust their strike zone to this kids size.
Again, it is not Joe's job to go on the warpath with the field crew each and every time there is a questionable call. Can't argue balls and strikes without being ejected. Is he going to argue the crap Gardner calls too?
Cashman is the one to do it behind the scenes so as to not show up the umps. You don't want bad feeling on the field (umps are people too) going into playoff games. Hopefully the league sends out a notice to the umps saying that there are too many bad strike zone calls on Judge because of his size. Instructions to adjust the low pitch vs Judges height.
Can Joe go out on an individual basis with egregious calls, absolutely. Should he, no.
Cashman is the one to do it behind the scenes so as to not show up the umps. You don't want bad feeling on the field (umps are people too) going into playoff games. Hopefully the league sends out a notice to the umps saying that there are too many bad strike zone calls on Judge because of his size. Instructions to adjust the low pitch vs Judges height.
Can Joe go out on an individual basis with egregious calls, absolutely. Should he, no.
Well stated
I don't think umps are screwing Judge intentionally. I think they have a hard time defining his strike zone, so they have ranged from calling shoulder high strikes to ones below the ankles. The first K last night was on a pitch that missed the bottom of the zone by a couple inches. The night before, the ump was giving Sale not just the corner, but giving him sliders curving around the plate.
I don't think umps are screwing Judge intentionally. I think they have a hard time defining his strike zone, so they have ranged from calling shoulder high strikes to ones below the ankles. The first K last night was on a pitch that missed the bottom of the zone by a couple inches. The night before, the ump was giving Sale not just the corner, but giving him sliders curving around the plate.
The interesting part is that I saw an article the other day that showed images of called strikes against him and they seemed to have the opposite of what we are all seeing. It displayed a large cluster of low strikes called against him in the first half and a larger cluster of strikes above the strike zone called in the second half.
Regardless, he needs to adjust. I'm hoping last night's dinger is the start. Not only was it opposite field, but he looked balanced and had his weight back on the AB. It was one of the best ABs he's had in weeks. I also think he needs to complain every now and then. Last night he barely gave a look back. He also hesitantly started his walk to 1B, so I'm not sure he was convinced it wasn't a strike anyway.
A few years ago, I read an article (I think on Fangraphs) suggesting that players who wear high socks get called for low strikes more often. I can't remember if it was a theory or something that was truly investigated.
The argument goes something like this: when the umpire is back there calling strikes, the place where the pant leg meets the high sock creates an impression of where the batter's knee is for the purpose of calling a strike zone, even though that line of demarcation is lower than the batter's actual knee.
Judge is big enough as it is. I remember thinking about this whenever A-Rod would come up and get punched on a low strike.
A few years ago, I read an article (I think on Fangraphs) suggesting that players who wear high socks get called for low strikes more often. I can't remember if it was a theory or something that was truly investigated.
The argument goes something like this: when the umpire is back there calling strikes, the place where the pant leg meets the high sock creates an impression of where the batter's knee is for the purpose of calling a strike zone, even though that line of demarcation is lower than the batter's actual knee.
Judge is big enough as it is. I remember thinking about this whenever A-Rod would come up and get punched on a low strike.
To me, when he whiffs on a high fastball or one that is tight, it's his fault. But the pitch that is killing him is low and outside. I've seen some replays where the ball is literally six inches off the plate (as shown by an overhead camera) that is called a strike. It seems any pitch that is low and outside is automatically going to be called a strike even though it never ever crosses the plate or nicks the edge of the plate. So when he takes - it's called a strike. You can see the frustration on his face when he is called out when the pitch is clearly outside and low. So he's been swinging at it knowing they are probably going to call it anyway.
With that in mind, I'm not sure the socks are the problem. What I can't come to grips with is that his size should have no effect on the ability of the umpire to see when a ball is clearly outside the plate. That is what is pissing me off because I've seen it repeatedly since the break. And you can see the obvious frustration on Judge's face as he knows they are calling outside pitches strikes - specifically for him.
I imagine Cash has already notified the umpire association and has probably brought video to prove it. I think at some point, the umps are going to stop calling the out of zone strike a strike. I sure hope so anyway.
Anyway - another interesting statistic. Judge is the 4th fastest hitter in MLB history to hit 40 home runs (took him 140 games). Even more interesting is who beat him....Sanchez who is the 3rd fastest to hit 40 home runs in MLB history (took him 139 games). If both Sanchez and Judge get their bats back on track, they will be a dangerous tandem. Throw in Hicks who I think is quickly becoming a superstar, and Clint Frazier, steady Didi, a hot Castro and (knock on wood) Bird getting his spring training swing back and this team has some serious offensive weapons.