Yankees crying foul over umpire’s strike zone is just amazing even if they are right

For Houston Astros fans, there are few joys that surpass listening to Yankees players and fans whine about something. They are still complaining about the sign-stealing scandal to this day, and every time something goes wrong, it seems like every Yankees fan on the planet comes out and chooses to set whoever is responsible on fire in the court of public opinion. It is like clockwork every time, and Wednesday night's matchup between Houston and New York was no different.

Neither the Astros nor the Yankees played great in the game itself. New York's bullpen could not get out of their own way, and their lineup struggled with consistency aside from two big swings from Austin Wells and Cody Bellinger. Yordan Alvarez and Jeremy Peña were great for Houston, but the offense had similar consistency issues, and Bryan Abreu had a very rare off-night out of the bullpen.

However, most of the focus after the game was on some admittedly suspect umpiring from home plate umpire Brian Walsh, especially late in the game. While New York may be 100% right in their assessment of Walsh's performance, it is still fun to watch the Yankees fume over it.

Yankees gloss over missed opportunities against Astros as they focus their ire on umpire Brian Walsh

Was the game-ending strike call against Jazz Chisholm borderline at best? Yes, and Chisholm certainly made sure that his displeasure was known both directly to Walsh as well as anyone who would listen after the game. Others with the Yankees, like manager Aaron Boone and catcher Austin Wells, were a bit more diplomatic, but still were not fans of how the strike zone changed during the course of the game.

The issue is that umpires doing a crappy job is not something new, and if the roles were reversed, there is zero chance New York would be saying a word right now. It isn't like the Yankees never had opportunities to put this game away in spite of the strike zone, but they simply did not execute enough to take advantage. For an Astros team that failed to snuff the Yankees' playoff chances in previous chances, the timing of their meltdown is delicious.

There are going to be games when calls don't go the Astros' way and when the Yankees get all the good fortune. That is just the nature of baseball. However, it is delightful when the stars align and Houston not only gets to beat a hated rival like the Yankees, but then gets to drink in all of their whining after the fact as well.

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