The New York Yankees benefitted from the Seattle Mariners’ shoddy defense in their game-tying ninth inning rally, but home plate umpire Mark Wegner made sure to halt their fledgling momentum in its tracks with a positively absurd low strike call to Jasson Dominguez with the lead run in scoring position.
It’s the inconsistency that kills you. The two-strike slider that Mariners closer Andres Muñoz delivered to Austin Wells might’ve clipped the bottom of the zone, but it was called a ball. The two strike low fastball to Dominguez was five inches further below the zone, yet somehow … strike three after the game had been tied in the most critical of situations.
Yankees manager Aaron Boone had seen enough, especially after his starting pitcher Max Fried was squeezed at every turn. Fried was forced to exit after the fifth inning, laboring through his outing on 91 pitches in part because the home plate umpire couldn’t figure out what he liked.
That left Boone flummoxed and ready to blow off a significant amount of steam at the drop of a hat – or, rather, at yet another dropping of the ball. That ridiculous Dominguez call sufficed, and he was swiftly ejected after racing out of the dugout, getting some licks in before he left.
Yankees manager Aaron Boone has first electric ejection of 2025 season vs. Mariners after ridiculous Jasson Dominguez strike three call.
The Yankees are attempting to secure a third straight series win after rallying to top the Padres and rattling the A’s. As if contending with Bryan Woo wasn’t a big enough challenge, the Yankees have had to deal with Mark Wegner’s whims, too.
Prior to Muñoz’s minor meltdown, the Ms closer hadn’t allowed a single earned run all season. This time, he managed to fall victim to his own malfeasance, hitting Paul Goldschmidt with a pitch and letting the lumbering first baseman swipe second. Pinch runner Pablo Reyes scampered to third on an Austin Wells dribbler, though by Wegner’s own strike zone, the Yankees’ catcher should’ve gone down looking earlier in the at-bat. Again, consistency.
Reyes scored on an Anthony Volpe chopper that was thrown way off target by Dylan Moore, but the bat was removed from Dominguez’s hands, stealing away a chance for him to be a hero. You can’t help but rock with Boone on this one.
