The first leg of Thursday’s doubleheader between the Philadelphia Phillies and Atlanta Braves ended on a questionable call from home plate umpire Bruce Dreckman.
The Braves were able to load the bases with two outs in the top of the ninth inning, trailing the Phillies by a single run. Left fielder Eli White was at the plate facing Phillies closer Jordan Romano.
On the fourth pitch of the at bat, Romano delivered a breaking ball that appeared to be out of the zone, but Dreckman disagreed, punching White out and ending the game.
From the announce booth, the Braves broadcast team lamented the missed call.
Jordan Romano and the Phillies held off a bases-loaded rally attempt by the Braves in a 5-4 win.
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) May 29, 2025
A generous strike zone from home plate umpire Bruce Dreckman helped.
C. J. Nitkowski: "No!"
Brandon Gaudin: "Oh, that missed." ⚾️🎙️ #MLB pic.twitter.com/wQhJa1EQj1
Missed calls are a part of baseball, but when they happen in high leverage moments, they are hard to look past.
Thursday’s game-ending call came just hours after an even worse called strike three ended the Angels’ hopes of a comeback against the Yankees on Wednesday night.
Major League Baseball has been experimenting with its ABS challenge system in spring training, which would allow teams the chance to review some calls on balls and strikes. Should the system eventually make its way to the regular season, it’s possible that calls like this are nothing but a memory in the near future.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Braves Announcers Couldn't Believe Ump’s Game-Ending Strike-Three Call vs. Phillies.
