Heartfelt Apology Announcement of Referee’s Apology Statement That Sent Off Bumgarner
Veteran referee Dan Bellino, who sent off Arizona Diamondbacks left-hander Madison Bumgarner for dubious reasons, issued an apology.
ESPN released a statement of apology from referee Bellino on the 7th (Korea Standard Time).
Bellino sent Bumgarner off after the Miami attack in the bottom of the first inning in a game between Arizona and the Miami Marlins at Rondipo Park in Miami, Florida, on the 5th.
Bellino, who was then examining Bumgarner’s left hand to check for foreign use, stared at Bumgarner for a long time without even looking at his hand When his eyes met, he exchanged a few words and ordered him to leave immediately.
Bumgarner had at the time expressed dissatisfaction with referee Ryan Willis’ strike ball decision. Bellino, who was a first baseman, had to be suspected and criticized for having the purpose of sending him off from the start to respond.
In an interview with local media after the match, Bumgarner said, “Didn’t you watch the video? I don’t know if I can explain it better than seeing it in person,” he said.
“When I started my major league career 15 years ago, I got a lot of good advice. Among them, there was also a saying to play every game with the thought that our child was sitting in the front row watching. This week I showed myself falling short of these expectations. I can’t say what words have been exchanged, but it’s entirely my responsibility. I will learn from this accident, and I sincerely apologize,” he said.
ESPN quoted sources as saying Bellino was disciplined for the incident. Details of the disciplinary action were not known. For now, Bellino has been sent to the Detroit Tigers and Houston Astros as referees. Bumgarner is not to be disciplined.
In Major League Baseball, it is extremely unusual for referees to publicly apologize for their actions. But his actions were controversial enough to call for an apology statement
