Being a Major League Baseball umpire isn’t easy. You’re constantly making bang-bang decisions on close plays and trying to judge 97-mph sliders with late tail and deceptive spin.
But every so often, a pitch is so obvious, so undeniably over the plate, that when it gets called wrong, the entire stadium—and half the internet—erupts. That’s exactly what happened Monday night at Camden Yards during the Orioles’ matchup with the Blue Jays.
A Pitch So Perfect, Everyone Saw It — Except the Ump
In the top of the fourth inning with Baltimore up 6–3, Toronto’s Ernie Clement faced Orioles starter Zach Eflin. After a first-pitch sinker missed inside, Eflin came back with another sinker—this one belt-high, dead center, textbook strike. Home plate umpire Brian Walsh called it a ball.
Instantly, Orioles broadcasters went from play-by-play to play-by-what-the-heck. “Wait a minute, wait a minute,” Orioles announcer Kevin Brown said in disbelief. “That’s literally right down the middle.”
Ben McDonald, a former MLB pitcher, wasn’t any calmer: “Brian Walsh, man… I mean, you couldn’t set it on a tee in the heart of the plate any better than that. How do you miss that? Get that right arm going, Brian.”
The crowd groaned. Social media exploded. The pitch tracker left no doubt: this wasn’t borderline—it was middle-middle.
Clement didn’t waste the gift. He stayed alive, singled later in the at-bat, and eventually scored, trimming Baltimore’s lead to 6–4. The Orioles still went on to win, but that blown call instantly became the viral moment of the night.
It wasn’t game-altering—but it was attention-grabbing.
Why It Might’ve Happened
To be fair, there’s a plausible explanation. Catcher Adley Rutschman had set up way outside. When Eflin’s sinker veered inside and hit the bullseye of the strike zone, Rutschman had to lunge across his body to catch it. That sudden movement may have fooled Walsh, who possibly perceived the pitch as off the mark.
Walsh was set up directly behind the plate. He had the angle and the vantage point. He should’ve called the pitch what it was—a strike all day long.
Incidents like this continue to fuel the debate over automated strike zones. It’s one thing to miss a pitch that clips the black or bends late at the knees. It’s another when a fastball center-cut is called a ball.
