Mike Winters
| 33 – Mike Winters | ||
|---|---|---|
 |
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| Winters in 2011 | ||
| Born: November 19, 1958 Oceanside, California | ||
| MLB debut | ||
| 1988 | ||
| Umpiring crew | ||
| A [1] | ||
| Crew members | ||
| Mike Winters (crew chief) | ||
| Mark Wegner | ||
| Laz Diaz | ||
| Tim Timmons | ||
| Career highlights and awards | ||
| Special Assignments | ||
Michael John Winters (born November 19, 1958) is an umpire in Major League Baseball who has worked in the National League from 1988 to 1999 and throughout both major leagues since 2000. For the 2011 season, Winters was named a crew chief following the retirements of Jerry Crawford, Mike Reilly, and Chuck Meriwether. During 2011, his crew included Mike Everitt, Mark Wegner, and Chris Guccione. Winters' 2012 crew included Wegner, Wally Bell, and Brian Knight.
Umpiring career
He umpired in the minor leagues from 1982 to 1989 before joining the NL's regular staff in 1990. Winters has worn uniform number 33 his entire career. He has officiated in the 1995 All-Star Game, eight Division Series (1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2006, 2010, 2013), the League Championship Series in 1997, 2004, 2008, 2011, 2012, and the 2002, 2006, and 2010 World Series. He was crew chief for the Division Series in 1998 and 1999.
Controversy
On September 23, 2007, Winters was accused of "baiting" San Diego Padres outfielder Milton Bradley in a game against the Colorado Rockies. When Bradley came to the plate in the eighth inning, plate umpire Brian Runge asked him if he had thrown his bat toward Runge following a strikeout in the fifth inning. Bradley denied having done so and asked Runge if Winters had told him that. Runge said Winters had not. After reaching first base, Bradley asked Winters if he had told Runge that Bradley had thrown his bat toward Runge, and Winters told him that he had indeed thrown his bat.[2] Bradley began arguing about the allegation, and Winters replied that he should "shut the (expletive) up and play the game," whereupon Bradley continued to argue and complained that Winters was "treating him like a piece of (expletive)."[3] Winters reportedly replied that Bradley was an "(expletive) piece of (expletive)," after which Bradley lunged at Winters and tore an anterior cruciate ligament in his knee while being restrained by manager Bud Black. Bradley later called Winters' reaction "the most unprofessional and most ridiculous thing I've ever seen. It's terrible. And now, because of him, my knee's hurt." Three days later, Major League Baseball suspended Winters for the remainder of the 2007 season due to his aiming a profanity at Bradley.[4]
Former Giants player Charlie Hayes also accused Winters of telling him to "go (expletive) himself" after Hayes was ejected for arguing balls and strikes in a June 1998 game, after which Hayes had to be restrained by then manager Dusty Baker. Winters denied that he had said that.[5]
Notable games
On August 17, 1992, Winters was the home plate umpire for Kevin Gross' no-hitter.[6]
On June 28, 2007, Winters was at second base when Toronto Blue Jay Frank Thomas hit his 500th career home run off Minnesota Twins pitcher Carlos Silva. Later in the game, Thomas was ejected by plate umpire Mark Wegner for arguing balls and strikes, with Toronto manager John Gibbons also getting thrown out.[7]
He was chosen as one of the umpires for the one-game Wild Card playoff between the Atlanta Braves and the St. Louis Cardinals on October 5, 2012.[8]
On July 13, 2013, Winters served as the third base umpire for Tim Lincecum's no-hitter vs San Diego, his first no-hitter as a crew chief.[9]
Personal
Winters went to college at San Diego State University and he currently lives in Carlsbad, California. He completed the New York City Marathon in 2007.[10]
See also
List of Major League Baseball umpires
References
- ↑ "Umpires by 2013 MLB Crew Grouping, as of June 23rd". closecallsports.com. June 23, 2013. Retrieved August 5, 2013.
- ↑ Brock, Corey (September 23, 2007). "Bradley injured after getting tossed". MLB.com. Retrieved August 9, 2013.
- ↑ Passan, Jeff (2007-09-27). "Five and Fly: Decorum deficit". Yahoo! Sports. Retrieved 2007-09-29.
- ↑ Blum, Ronald (2007-09-26). "Umpire Mike Winters suspended for remainder of regular season over Bradley flap". Associated Press via Yahoo! Sports. Retrieved 2007-09-26.
- ↑ Schulman, Henry (2007-09-25). "Padres' GM thinks S.F. will look to the stars". San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved 2007-09-26.
- ↑ Retrosheet Boxscore: Los Angeles Dodgers 2, San Francisco Giants 0. Retrosheet.org.
- ↑ Momentum of Thomas' 500th homer erased as Twins rally. ESPN.com. Retrieved October 26, 2012.
- ↑ Umpires for Wild Card Games, Division Series announced Darling, Kellogg Will Serve As Crew Chiefs for Wild Card Games; Davis, DeMuth, Gorman and West Assigned to Lead Division Series Crews. MLB.com. Retrieved October 5, 2012.
- ↑ "Freak No-Hitter: Lincecum Dices Padres for 2013 No-No 2." Close Call Sports and the Umpire Ejection Fantasy League. July 14, 2013.
- ↑ "UEFL Profile of MLB Umpire: Mike Winters." Close Call Sports and the Umpire Ejection Fantasy League. March 8, 2013.
External links
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