Why MLB can’t just take the easy way out with Angel Hernandez

Angel Hernandez is notorious for having perhaps the worst strike zone of any umpire in the history of the game.

Time and again, Hernandez has made bad call after bad call, and on Friday night, he was already in midseason form when he made some more controversial calls.

Texas Rangers rookie Wyatt Langford struck out looking on three pitches, all of which were well out of the strike zone. But that didn't stop Hernandez from ringing him up.

But why can't Major League Baseball just do away with Hernandez? Why is it that he still has a job?

Unfortunately, it's much more complicated than it seems, and there is some history that needs to be brought to light.

Why MLB can't fire Angel Hernandez

Firstly, the umpire's union is typically in charge of punishment for their fellow umpires. Firing an umpire based on nothing but poor performance is nearly impossible.

Back in 2012, umpire Bob Davidson was suspended for a game after "repeated violations of the Office of the Commissioner's standards for situation handling." Mike Winters was suspended in 2007 for escalating a situation with Milton Bradley and Brian Runge was suspended the following year for making contact with then-New York Mets manager Jerry Manuel.

Nothing like what happened in those cases has ever taken place with Hernandez, despite his poor calls. Therefore, the umpire's union wouldn't have probable cause to punish him in any way.

But to further understand why MLB hasn't gotten rid of Hernandez, it's important to remember that he has twice filed lawsuits against the league claiming discrimination.

Hernandez, a Cuban-born umpire, has not been on hand for the World Series since 2005. He has been an umpire since 1993 and has been passed over for crew chief assignments multiple times.

The veteran umpire filed for discrimination back in 2017 but lost in 2021. He filed again last year, but his claims were subsequently dismissed.

Even if Hernandez were to be fired from his job, there is a very good chance that he could file a third lawsuit against the league. Perhaps MLB doesn't want to even entertain the possibility of another lawsuit from Hernandez.

It's clear that Hernandez has made many bad calls, but getting rid of him looks to be all but impossible.