The job of an MLB umpire is incredibly difficult. Trying to make a call in live action is challenging. Umpires are frequently argued  with and booed even when they make the correct call.

In all reality, most umpires do not deserve as much criticism as they receive. However, umpire Angel Hernandez has consistently struggled to make the right call, and the MLB world is tired of it.

The Texas Rangers defeated the Houston Astros 12-8 on Friday night. Texas could have scored even more runs if it wasn't for an at-bat that saw Rangers rookie Wyatt Langford strike out with the bases loaded on three pitches that were well out of the zone.

Video via Welcome to the Ump Show on X (formerly Twitter):

Again, umpires are going to make mistakes. And even Langford's at-bat could be forgiven if Hernandez was not already known for constantly making wrong calls. But the fact of the matter is that this has been an issue for a long time.

Umpire Scorecards on X provided Hernandez's stats from Friday's game, and they are the equivalent of a hitter going 0-for-5 with four strikeouts at the plate.

Codify reported that one of Hernandez's called strikes was the furthest out of the zone among 53,000 total strikes called.

In all reality, that pitch would have probably forced a left-handed batter to step out of the box to avoid getting hit.

Another brutal Angel Hernandez performance, yet no consequences

MLB umpire Angel Hernandez (5) calls out during the game between the Arizona Diamondbacks against the Colorado Rockies at Coors Field.
Ron Chenoy-USA TODAY Sports

MLB insider Jon Heyman thinks it's time to have the discussion about consequences for umpires. Heyman does not necessarily think umpires should be fired for struggling, although he did mention the idea of getting “designated,” but the veteran MLB insider believes that optioning umpires could help matters.

“Umpires should be eligible to be optioned or in rare cases possibly even designated,” Heyman wrote on X.

The idea of promoting the top minor-league umpires to MLB and sending the worst MLB umpires to the minor leagues makes sense. After all, players are the ones who currently deal with the consequences when they struggle, and umpires, as we saw in Langford's at-bat, play a big role.

Perhaps Langford would have drawn a walk and earned an RBI during that at-bat. That would have increased his confidence while boosting his OBP and RBI total, while not adding a strikeout to his statistics. Now, however, Langford's average and OBP dropped, he did not get an RBI, and will have one added strikeout that was not deserved.

The difference is that, for Langford, struggling could lead to ending up in Triple-A. For Angel Hernandez and MLB umpires, though, there are currently no consequences aside from players arguing calls and fans booing.

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Scotty White ·

Aaron Boone looking angry with angry emojis by him. Angel Hernandez

Ryan Bologna ·

Cardinals' Lance Lynn with smoke coming out of his ears on left. MLB umpire Angel Hernandez on right.

Joey Mistretta ·

Derek Holland, a former Rangers pitcher, wants to see action taken.

“Umpires should be held accountable and have to take interviews just like players to respond to their performance. Should be some soft or punishment for terrible performances just like for the players. They get sent down or released but not umpires. Sucks cause that whole at bat was taken away from Langford and it happens to many others. And the sad part is the player faces the consequences because their performance is affected by that.

“I mean what’s the point of the reviews of their night if they have nothing to worry about? Cool we graded their game but doesn’t matter anyway if it’s bad or not,” Holland wrote on X.

So what's next?

I personally don't believe umpires should be fired for struggling. With that being said, I completely agree with the idea of sending them down to the minor leagues and having them speak to the media after games. Both of those actions would probably improve their performance.

Again, they don't face consequences right now. So if they have a bad night, it does't really matter for them aside from the backlash from fans. And the important note to make is that there are plenty of great umpires in MLB, but their impressive performances are often overlooked by the lackluster effort of umpires such as Angel Hernandez.

Hernandez still has games where he performs well, but they are seemingly becoming more rare. Action needs to be taken soon, because the sport of baseball is not going to benefit from umpires stealing headlines.