The Padres were down to their final outs in the ninth inning against the Cubs on Thursday in Game 3 of the wild-card series. San Diego trailed 3–1 while down to their final three outs of the game, and potentially their season.
Xander Bogaerts was at the plate with a full count, and he was rung up on a brutal called third strike from home plate umpire D.J. Reyburn. The pitch from Brad Keller appeared to be below the strike zone, but Reyburn ruled it a strikeout, leaving Bogaerts bewildered.
Brown missed the corner with a 97-mph fastball, which Bogaerts rightfully opted against swinging at. Despite the good plate discipline, Bogaerts was sat down on strikes, which prompted Padres manager Mike Shildt to storm onto the field to express his dismay.
BRUTAL strike three call on Xander Bogaerts would've been ball four pic.twitter.com/h7aiAqNleN
— Jomboy Media (@JomboyMedia) October 3, 2025
It's a critical miss from Reyburn. Keller missed the zone entirely yet was awarded an important out. He then proceeded to hit the next two batters, putting the tying run on base.
Given the situation, it's a mistake that simply can't be afforded from an umpire. When MLB introduces the ABS system, that would be a challengeable play by the batter. Instead, Bogaerts was left seething as he was robbed of a free pass to first base.
San Diego's comeback attempts were stalled, partly because of Reyburn's missed strikeout call, and they fell 3–1 to Chicago to bow out of the postseason.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Brutal Missed Call in Ninth Inning of Padres-Cubs Shows Why Fans Can't Wait for ABS.
