Umpire suspended 'indefinitely' after video of horrendous game-ending third strike call goes viral
The Southland Conference has suspended an umpire who ended a game with an egregious third strike call Friday night.
With two outs in the ninth inning, left fielder Davon Mims was at the plate with a 1-1 count.
Mims took a pitch low in the zone that was called a strike by the home plate umpire, and Mims protested the call.
Apparently, the umpire did not like that his call was questioned.
NCAA signage on the field before a game between the Oklahoma Sooners and the Ole Miss Rebels during the Division I men's baseball championship at Charles Schwab Field Omaha June 26, 2022, in Omaha, Neb. (C. Morgan Engel/NCAA Photos via Getty Images)
On the next pitch, the New Orleans pitcher threw an obvious ball down and off the plate, but the home plate umpire called strike three, ending the game.
"Oh my gosh! Wow! He got wrung up on ball two, and the game is over," the announcer said. "Oh my goodness. That is horrific!"
Mims spoke to the umpire — angrily — but the ump continued walking while Mims had to be held back by the opposing catcher.
The conference said the unnamed umpire's actions were "deemed detrimental to the conference and in violation of Section 3 Character and Conduct of the CCA Mechanics Manual for Baseball."
The Oregon State Beavers take on the Arkansas Razorbacks during the Division I men's baseball championship at TD Ameritrade Park June 28, 2018, in Omaha, Neb. (Justin Tafoya/NCAA Photos via Getty Images)
"The Southland Conference is committed to promoting and enforcing the principles and standards of good sporting conduct with all conference activities involving our member institutions, including competition against non-conference opponents," the conference said in a statement Saturday. "The conference expects this conduct to be upheld by all game participants.
"As a result, the umpire has been removed from the series and has been suspended indefinitely from Southland Conference baseball games."
The Privateers moved to 9-5 with the win while the Delta Devils fell to 6-7.
A baseball and glove on the field prior to Game 1 of the College World Series championship series between the Michigan Wolverines and Vanderbilt Commodores June 24, 2019, at TD Ameritrade Park Omaha in Omaha, Neb. (Peter Aiken/Getty Images)
On Thursday, Mims was named the Athlete of the Week by Mississippi Valley State Athletics.
Fox News' Joe Morgan contributed to this report.