Toronto catcher Ernie Whitt says umpire Joe Brinkman makes calls against the Blue Jays because he dislikes the team, according to Whitt's new book, "Catch."
"Brinkman hates our ballclub," Whitt wrote. "He's gone downhill as an umpire. And the scary part of it is he runs an umpiring school."I thought he was pretty fair until the last couple of years, then I think he took on an attitude of `I'm going to get you guys.'
"Umpires held grudges and there are a few crews that just don't like the Jays," Whitt wrote.
"Joe Brinkman's one of them. If's gotten bad over the last two years, but Joe's attitude actually goes back to when Bobby Mattick was managing. All the umpires hated Bobby but Joe had his run-ins with Bobby Cox, too.
"Now he hates Jimy Williams . . . and he's thrown Jimy out a few times over situations that were absolutely nothing. Every close call with Brinkman and his crew goes against the Jays."
Brinkman was the home plate umpire Wednesday in the New York Yankees' 5-3 victory over the Blue Jays.
He said he had discussed the situation with American League president Bobby Brown "and other than that, I have no comment. I really don't have anything to say about that," Brinkman said.
Whitt repeated his comments after Wednesday's game.
"It's not that I don't like him," Whitt said. "I have nothing against him.
"I hope he improves . . . I never called him a cheater. He's not. He's just not a good umpire."