Hazelwood Central Grad Surrounded by World Series Controversy

World Series umpire and has taken some serious heat from Games 3 and 4 of the series, and it seems that fans have straddled the love-hate line.

In addition, the question has continued to circle as to whether Kulpa, who still resides in the St. Louis metro area, has shown bias.

On Saturday, Kulpa—who served as first base umpire for the game—missed calling St. Louis Cardinals left fielder Matt Holliday out, when replays showed that first baseman Mike Napoli tagged him in time. The Cardinals went on to win the game, 16-7.

Following Game 3, Major League Baseball’s Executive Vice President of Baseball Operations Joe Torre stood up for Kulpa and said, “That question hinted of questioning someone’s integrity. To have that question be asked, I just thought was over the line.”

Sunday, he served as home plate umpire. Some speculated that his strike zone was wide.

Furthermore, St. Louis Post-Dispatch columnist Bernie Miklasz points out a number of facts about Kulpa’s strike zone in Game 4, such as, “Kulpa was accurate on about 95 percent of his ball-strike calls.”

St. Louis Cardinals play the Texas Rangers in Game 5 of the World Series at 7:05 p.m. Monday in Texas.