Ryan Benjamin Blakney (born May 24, 1985) is an American Major League Baseball (MLB) umpire. He has umpired in MLB since 2015.
| Ryan Blakney | |
|---|---|
_(cropped).jpg) Blakney in the Midwest League in 2008 | |
| Born: May 24, 1985 Wenatchee, Washington, U.S. | |
| MLB debut | |
| April 21, 2015 | |
| Crew Information | |
| Umpiring crew | 17 |
| Crew members |
|
| Career highlights and awards | |
| Special Assignments | |
Career
Blakney made his MLB debut on April 21, 2015.[1] For the 2018 regular season he was found to be one of the ten best home plate umpires in terms of accuracy in calling balls and strikes. His error rate was 7.97%. This was based on a study conducted at Boston University where 372,442 pitches were culled and analyzed.[2] Blakney was promoted to a full-time umpiring position before the 2020 Major League Baseball season began.[3]
Blakney was the home plate umpire during Reid Detmers's no-hitter on May 10, 2022.[4]
On August 31, 2022, in a game between the San Francisco Giants and the San Diego Padres, Blaney made a controversial decision when he ejected Giants player Brandon Crawford after an argument on a checked swing. USA Today ran an article on a missed call by Blakney, saying "the missed call — and subsequent hilarious ejection — are a stark reminder that nobody is perfect."[5]
On May 4, 2024, in a game between the New York Yankees and Detroit Tigers, Blakney called Yankees player Aaron Judge out on strikes on a pitch from Tigers pitcher Tyler Holton. When Judge disputed the call at the plate, Blakney ejected him, the first ejection of Judge's career.[6]
See also
