The Arizona Diamondbacks may have gotten the win on Thursday night, but the team's mascot wasn't pleased with umpire Dan Iassogna.
Game 3 of the NLCS was crucial for the Diamondbacks. Win and they continue to have a pulse. But if they lost to the Philadelphia Phillies, the series would be all but over. That's why tensions were high in the ninth inning with the score tied at one. Every play was even more magnified, as well as every call (and missed call) from umpires.
It's safe to say that D. Baxter the Bobcat — the Diamondbacks mascot — spoke for everyone during a stress-filled top of the ninth.
Paul Sewald was on the mound facing Alec Bohm with two outs and Bryce Harper at second base. He was just trying to keep Philly at bay to give Arizona a chance to win in the next frame. The count ran to 2-2 when he seemingly slung a fastball to the top corner of the strike zone (according to our TVs). That wasn't what home plate umpire Dan Iassogna thought, as he called it ball three.
All Diamondbacks fans in attendance were furious. Baxter was so mad that he threw his hat at the netting while standing on top of the dugout.
The mascot was PISSED pic.twitter.com/ouDG5lkchF
— Jomboy Media (@JomboyMedia) October 19, 2023
My favorite part is the fact that his mouth is moving while having this hissy fit. We can only imagine what kind of colorful language could've been used there.
Arizona catcher Gabriel Montero didn't have to travel far to catch this offering from Sewald. And, while it appeared to be a clear miss from Iassogna, it's not shocking that he called this pitch a ball. He was set up on the inside corner, so he had to call this pitch based on his peripheral vision.
This wasn't just an isolated bad call, though. Iassogna had a rough night behind the plate. It was so bad, in fact, that he performed worse than Angel Hernandez. No, seriously:
Umpire Dan Iassogna missed 14 calls in #NLCS game 3 #Diamondbacks v #Phillies.
He had a correct call rate of 89.4%. For context, last place Angel Hernandez had a correct call rate of 90.4%. https://t.co/QitKst2XEU pic.twitter.com/UbCQSb5e8y
— Umpire Auditor (@UmpireAuditor) October 20, 2023
Based on his performance heading into this contest, nobody can be surprised about what transpired. It doesn't help when the missed call comes at one of the game's most crucial moments, though.
Sewald shook this off and caught Bohm looking for strike three to end the inning. Then, of course, the Diamondbacks walked things off against Craig Kimbrel in the bottom half of the frame to get their first win of the NLCS.
It could've very easily gone another way had Bohm come through with two outs and a runner in scoring position. But for now, Arizona is back in this series with Game 4 happening on Friday night.
