Maddon believed that home-plate umpire D.J. Reyburn was giving the veteran Cardinal team a more favorable strike zone over the young Cubs players. Maddon gave the umpire a piece of his mind before being ejected from the game.
“I had enough,” Maddon told reporters afterward. “I had enough. I had
enough. It was the whole game. It was egregiously bad. I mean, you
cannot permit that to happen. We’re trying to ascend. And we’re not
going to take that from anybody, anywhere, at any time.
“We play a veteran club with some veteran battery and you got guys that barely have a month in the big leagues. I’m not going to take it. Our guys deserve equal treatment. And I’m not going to take it.
“And I’ll further add: I thought all of our guys – (Kris) Bryant, (Jorge) Soler, (Addison) Russell – handled the moment extremely well. I’m really proud of the fact that they didn’t turn on an umpire. They didn’t say anything disrespectful. They didn’t act like a bunch of babies. They didn’t do any of that. And I thought that was spectacular also.
“Not going to put up with anything, I’m not, OK? We’re trying to get something done here. And I’m not going to permit our guys to get shortchanged based on the fact that they haven’t been here a long time," Maddon said.
This is one of a manager's duties: sticking up for his players. Whether Maddon's tirade changed the outcome of the game (the Cubs hung on to beat the Cardinals 6-5) is debatable. It is an important lesson to his team that Maddon will have his players back so they do not get into trouble with the umpires. In the unwritten rules of the game, umpires like players can hold grudges. Umpires do not like it when players attempt to show them up - - - make grand gestures or grouse about strike calls. A young player does not want to get a reputation of being a complainer. That is where the manager puts himself between his player and the umpire - - - to send a message to both of them.
All the teams require from the home plate umpire is a consistent strike zone. If the umpire is going to call the high strike, then call it all game long for both teams. If the umpire is not going to give strikes at the knees, do it for the entire game. Pitchers know they have to adjust during a game to both the batters and the umpire's strike zone.
“We play a veteran club with some veteran battery and you got guys that barely have a month in the big leagues. I’m not going to take it. Our guys deserve equal treatment. And I’m not going to take it.
“And I’ll further add: I thought all of our guys – (Kris) Bryant, (Jorge) Soler, (Addison) Russell – handled the moment extremely well. I’m really proud of the fact that they didn’t turn on an umpire. They didn’t say anything disrespectful. They didn’t act like a bunch of babies. They didn’t do any of that. And I thought that was spectacular also.
“Not going to put up with anything, I’m not, OK? We’re trying to get something done here. And I’m not going to permit our guys to get shortchanged based on the fact that they haven’t been here a long time," Maddon said.
This is one of a manager's duties: sticking up for his players. Whether Maddon's tirade changed the outcome of the game (the Cubs hung on to beat the Cardinals 6-5) is debatable. It is an important lesson to his team that Maddon will have his players back so they do not get into trouble with the umpires. In the unwritten rules of the game, umpires like players can hold grudges. Umpires do not like it when players attempt to show them up - - - make grand gestures or grouse about strike calls. A young player does not want to get a reputation of being a complainer. That is where the manager puts himself between his player and the umpire - - - to send a message to both of them.
All the teams require from the home plate umpire is a consistent strike zone. If the umpire is going to call the high strike, then call it all game long for both teams. If the umpire is not going to give strikes at the knees, do it for the entire game. Pitchers know they have to adjust during a game to both the batters and the umpire's strike zone.
