ATS Sports Blog

The home plate umpire has so much control in the game of baseball that it is definitely reckless to make your bets before checking who the home plate umpire is, especially if you are wagering on totals. Since we already took a look at the best umpires to have for a game to go over the posted total, it is now time to take a look at the best under umpires.

If you are looking to bet on an under and you see these umpires listed, you should be absolutely delighted and may want to consider making a larger wager.

Top Five Over Umpires in Baseball Today

1. John Hirschbeck – Hirschbeck is an under bettors best friend. He has the record to prove that wagering on the under is a great move when he is behind home plate, and he has the statistics to prove that it should continue. Since 2005 Hirschbeck has called a higher % of pitches a strike than any other umpire in baseball other than Doug Eddings at 63.7%. He also has the lowest hits or walks per inning pitched at just 1.28 per inning. With these numbers it shouldn’t surprise anyone that the under is 60-40 in his last 100 games.

2. Andy Fletcher – Fletcher’s record to the under through the All Star Break in 2009 is impossible to ignore at a stunning 15-2-2. It’s quite amazing that one could have bet on the under in all 19 games Fletcher has been behind home plate and lost only twice. This year isn’t just an aberration though, as the under was 32-17 in his games behind home plate in 2007 and 2008. The average number of runs scored in a game done by Fletcher since 2005 is just 8.9.

3. Doug Eddings - Eddings is 10-8 to the over this year, but don’t let that record fool you, Eddings still is a major under umpire. Since 2005 Eddings has called a stunning 65.1% of pitches a strike, far outpacing the second place Hirschbeck. In that time span the under is 83-62 when Eddings is behind home plate. Eddings also has a K/BB ratio of 2.70, far above the league average for umpires of about 2.10.

4. Bill Miller – Miller has been a consistent under umpire for several years now. In fact, since 2005 the under is 87-60 in Miller’s games behind home plate. Miller doesn’t allow many runners on base, as the walks or hits per innings pitched is only 1.33 in his games. Miller actually issues less walks than any other umpire, average just 5.7 walks per game.

5. Ron Kulpa – Kulpa is most definitely an under umpire. In 2008 his games averaged just 7.8 runs per game, least among all umpires. Combining 2008 and thus far in 2009 Kulpa has a record 30-13 toward the under. In that span Kulpa has been striking out more batters than any other umpire, at a little more than 15 per game. Almost every year since Kulpa began umpiring in 1999 he has either been toward the under or neutral, and over the long run his stats suggest he is definitely an under umpire.

• Digg this post
• Recommend on Facebook
• Buzz it up
• Tweet about it

Popularity: unranked [?]