Two days after his ejection at home plate, Minnesota Twins third baseman Josh Donaldson lashed out at Major League Baseball’s umpires, saying there’s “no accountability” with the group and that the umps “don’t care.”
“[If] the umpire consistently isn’t doing [his] job correctly, that’s affecting our careers, that’s affecting our success,” Donaldson told reporters on Saturday in a video call, according to a transcription by the Star Tribune. “At the end of the day, there’s no reprimand, no accountability for the guys that are making the decision. As a matter of fact, they don’t care. They don’t care at all, most of them. They just want to get the game over with, for the most part, and it’s pretty sad because guys are making six figures a year and there’s no accountability.”
Donaldson barked at plate umpire Dan Bellino for the second time Thursday in the sixth inning of a 4-3 loss to the Chicago White Sox. With Minnesota trailing 3-2, Bellino called a strike when the 2015 American League MVP checked his swing on a 2-0 pitch from Reynaldo Lopez.
Twins manager Rocco Baldelli went out to speak with Bellino, and Donaldson homered down the left-field line on the next offering. After rounding the bases, Donaldson kicked dirt at home plate as he crossed it.
Bellino ejected him immediately, and Donaldson, realizing he had missed home plate, returned to the plate to touch it and then argued as he kicked more dirt on it.
Donaldson also had argued with Bellino on a 1-1 breaking ball in the first inning that appeared to be high but was called a strike, leading to a strikeout.
“It doesn’t matter to them,” Donaldson told reporters on Saturday. “They don’t realize we’re playing for our families, we’re playing for our livelihood.”
Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.