Umpire Laz Diaz took Cardinals criticism personally with bad call after bad call

In the St. Louis Cardinals loss to the Atlanta Braves on Thursday night, Cards hitting coach Turner Ward was ejected in Laz Diaz's latest performance of the ump show. Diaz, who has the potential to be his generation's Angel Hernandez, threw out Ward for arguing from the St. Louis dugout.

In a game the Cards eventually lost by a slim margin, Diaz's actions were consequential. Not only did Diaz eject the hitting coach, but he also took out his frustration on St. Louis with the next seven questionable calls. Yes, seven, per Umpire Auditor.

MLB rarely does anything to reprimand its umpires, and they surely won't punish Diaz who is one of the more respected umps in the sport. However, this just goes to show how much those who judge the game on a daily basis are allowed to get away with. While social accounts and writers often call them out, there's only so much players and managers can do without getting fined, or worse.

Laz Diaz makes an example out of the St. Louis Cardinals

St. Louis took two out of three games against the Braves on the road -- a feat that cannot be understated for a team that has underachieved all season long.

The Cards have a complicated offseason outlook, and that starts upstairs, where John Mozeliak and the front office are surely feeling the heat. While one loss at the hands of the best team in baseball and a power-hungry umpire may not seem like much for a last-place team, sweeping the Braves would have been something to hang their hat on, and proof that the Cardinals were heading in the right direction.

Expect Mozeliak to target starting pitching, especially with Adam Wainwright -- who could not record his 199th career win on Thursday night -- on the way out.