Sports
Cuban umpire Angel Hernandez accuses MLB of discrimination
The Cuban umpire claimed that MLB manipulates the internal evaluations of umpires of racial minorities in order not to give them opportunities as team managers
June 10, 2022 11:21am
Updated: June 10, 2022 2:03pm
A new case of alleged discrimination has been uncovered in Major League Baseball (MLB). Veteran Cuban umpire Angel Hernandez has accused MLB of manipulating its umpire reviews to prevent minority umpires from becoming crew chiefs in a legal filing, The Athletic reports.
Umpire Hernandez claims that in 2017 there was only one umpire crew chief from minority background in the 150-year history of MLB.
The Cuban claims he was discriminated against by the league after not being assigned to the World Series since 2005 and not being considered as crew chief despite his experience in the Majors.
Angel Hernandez's lawyers claim that the MLB manipulated the umpire's evaluations, so they asked to reopen the racial discrimination lawsuit in which a court did not uphold him last year.
Umpire Angel Hernandez alleged in a legal filing that MLB manipulated its internal umpiring metrics to disadvantage minorities, thereby excluding them from becoming crew chiefs.@dankaplan with more: https://t.co/TrxdQ94ToY pic.twitter.com/jGjgSt35FF
— The Athletic (@TheAthletic) June 9, 2022
Hernandez's filing with the Second Circuit Court of Appeals stems from the discrimination case he filed against MLB in 2017. U.S. District Judge J. Paul Oetken dismissed the case in March 2021.
"The explicit reason offered by MLB is that Hernandez has not demonstrated leadership ability and situational management skills in critical high-pressure roles on a consistent basis," read the judge’s decision.
Ángel Hernández has filed suit against Major League Baseball, alleging discrimination against minority umpires, per @TheAthletic.
— Front Office Sports (@FOS) June 9, 2022
The veteran umpire claims MLB has manipulated metrics to keep minorities from being promoted to crew chiefs. pic.twitter.com/oWY6D1OvUG
"The District Court also failed to give proper weight to evidence of MLB's disparate treatment of Mr. Hernandez, including evidence that MLB was manipulating the performance of Mr. Hernandez and other minority umpires to make their performance appear worse," Cuban umpire and attorney Kevin Murphy said as part of his appeal.
The argument claims that there was a disconnect between his mid-season umpire reviews and those at the end of the season. Angel Hernandez claimed that his mid-season reviews were always positive but that the league altered his evaluations to make him look worse and prevent him from moving up the ranks.
When he first filed his lawsuit in 2017, he said that MLB had only employed one minority crew chief in all 150 years. During the pandemic-shortened 2020 season, Hernandez was made interim crew chief because other umpires opted out of the assignments.
Es triste que el umpire Ángel Hernández insista en la teoría de conspiración discriminatoria en su contra. Las herramientas para medir la actuación de los umpires de Grandes Ligas son cada día más claras y contundentes y sus evaluaciones son de las peores.#FerPlay
— Fernando Álvarez (@FerAlvarez) June 10, 2022
In the past, the Cuban has accused MLB executive Joe Torre of holding a grudge against him for a decision he made against the New York Yankees when Torre was the team's manager. Hernandez was hired as a major league umpire in 1993, but has not worked a World Series since 2005.
