FanHouse Phil Cuzzi

MINNEAPOLIS -- Phil Cuzzi, the umpire who missed a call down the left-field line that helped cost the Twins their game Friday night at Yankee Stadium, was fired as a minor league umpire in 1993.

According to a June 1999 story by The Associated Press, Cuzzi was working at a hotel bar in July 1999 when he approached National League president Len Coleman and asked for a chance to get back into umpiring.

Coleman allowed Cuzzi to work his way back from the low minors, and Cuzzi was one of 25 new umpires hired in 1999 as a response to mass resignations that were part of a failed labor ploy.

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Crew chief Tim Tschida admitted that left field umpire Phil Cuzzi blew a key call in the 11th inning of the Twins' Game 2 loss to the Yankees.

In the half-inning before New York's Mark Teixeira scraped his walk-off home run over the left-field wall, Twins catcher Joe Mauer sent a bloop down the line that deflected off of left fielder Melky Cabrera's glove and then bounced in fair territory. Either way, the ball was fair. Only Cuzzi ruled that it wasn't, stripping a leadoff double from the Twins' MVP candidate.

"[He] saw the ball as foul, called what he saw," Tschida said. "Afterwards, like any close play, we went in and we looked at it and it's a clear indication that an incorrect decision was rendered."

Ozzie Guillen and the White Sox returned to Chicago for their home-opener on Monday afternoon, but Ozzie didn't stick around for very long. Guillen was ejected in the third inning of the White Sox victory for arguing balls and strikes with home plate umpire Phil Cuzzi because Ozzie felt Cuzzi wasn't calling the same strike zone for Javier Vazquez that he was calling for Twins starter Chase Blackburn.

Apparently Oz wasn't lying when he said during the spring that he was going to get back to being the old Ozzie this season. It was the 13th time Guillen's been ejected (Watch out, Bobby Cox, he's coming for you.) during his span as White Sox manager, and not coincidentally, it was Cuzzi who threw him out of his last game on July 31st last season.

"I don't want to waste my time talking about that guy," Guillen said Monday.

"I stand up for my players. If I don't think it was the right call, that's my job to protect them. I didn't like a couple of calls and I went out and [argued]. It is something I tell the players-I'm there for them."

There was a lot more that Guillen wanted to say about Cuzzi, but during his press conference he made it clear he doesn't want to get fined or suspended his early in the season with his team playing so well. He did say that he's already set $100,000 aside this season for the fines he expects to incur.

Ozzie Guillen had his biggest blow up of the season last night in New York when he was ejected in the first inning by home plate umpire Phil Cuzzi. He probably didn't realize it at the time, but Cuzzi was doing him a huge favor. If Ozzie thought he was mad in the first inning, I wonder how he'd have felt after watching the Yankees hit eight home runs against his team.

Anyway, Ozzie took exception to a non-call of a check swing by Derek Jeter and he let Cuzzi know about it. Cuzzi then said something to Guillen, and according to the White Sox radio announcer Ed Farmer (Yankee Stadium has microphones around home plate), Guillen told Cuzzi to get back behind the plate and do his job. That's when Cuzzi ejected him. Cuzzi then tossed Paul Konerko a few innings later.

Obviously, Ozzie wasn't happy with the either ejection, and he didn't hide his feelings after the game.

"If I say what I feel, I will be suspended and this guy (Cuzzi) will keep umpiring and [shafting] people," said Guillen, who was upset over a checked swing on Derek Jeter. "You look at games and he's in the middle of something.

" ... I remember they suspended me for four days and sent me to anger management. Well, I hope the league watched this game and see how this man was reacting to me and the player and take a real look at it and see what they can do about it.

"From 1985 to now, I don't see any umpire (disrespect) players and managers the way that guy does. That's something you don't tolerate as a manager. I see this guy do it over and over. It's time for someone to step it up. ... If they're willing to fine me for what I say, I'm willing to pay that money because I called him a lot of things I'm not supposed to say."

How do you really feel, Oz?

I can't say for sure whether or not Cuzzi did overreact because I wasn't there, and I didn't see the game, but I can say that Ozzie is 100% correct on one thing. He will get fined and suspended, but the way the White Sox are playing, I doubt he'll mind the days off.