VIDEO: Ump Ruled Reds' Derek Dietrich Was Hit by Pitch on Clear Strike From Marlins' Pablo Lopez
By Jerry Trotta
Get a load of this, folks, because you might not see it again for quite some time. In 2019, it's become accepted around the league that Derek Dietrich is renowned (or infamous) for his tendency to lean into pitches and subsequently get awarded a HBP by home plate umpires. Well, the Cincinnati Reds' utility man was up to his obnoxious antics again Monday night against Pablo Lopez and the Marlins. Check out ump Hunter Wendelstedt granting Dietz a free base...on a pitch that literally caught the inside of the strike zone.
You can't be serious, right? It would appear that the 30-year-old vet is living rent free in the minds of the boys in blue (or black). There's a method or reasoning to Dietrich's madness, however.
Getting beaned by opposing pitchers is virtually the only way he has reached base in 2019 -- totaling 25 HBP, 19 home runs and 18 singles, equating to a woeful .203 batting average.
Please, let this be the last time Dietrich is indecently bailed out at the plate this season.