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St. Louis Cardinals pitcher Hancel Rincon is addressed by umpire Doug Eddings over the way he wore his hat in a game vs. the Colorado Rockies at Coors Field on Sept. 4, 2026
Umpire Doug Eddings is under fire after going on an insane power trip that ruined the MLB debut of St. Louis Cardinals reliever Hancel Rincon.
But this wasn’t just your normal umpire overstep. Instead, Eddings decided to throw a temper tantrum over the way that Rincon, a 24-year-old from the Dominican Republic, was wearing his hat while on the mound.
The incident ultimately ended up with Eddings handing Rincon a pitch clock violation, ejecting St. Louis manager Oli Marmol, and making a dubious call that gave the Rockies the lead.
Umpire Doug Eddings went on a power trip during the bottom of the 6th in the Cardinals Rockies game.
First, he demanded that pitcher Hancel Rincon (in his MLB debut) straighten his hat since no one will wear a hat like that on “his field”.
When manager Oli Marmol went to talk… pic.twitter.com/ei4rCAalxq
— Umpire Auditor (@UmpireAuditor) September 5, 2026
Doug Eddings Didn’t Want Hancel Rincon To Wear A Crooked Hat On ‘His Field’
For years, pitchers have worn their hats slightly turned to the side while on the mound. Hall of Famer CC Sabathia and three-time All-Star Fernando Rodney are among the most notable players to have done so.
But apparently, for Eddings, Rincon doing so was a bridge too far.
“Some words exchanged there. Quite honestly, I thought it was pretty embarrassing on his end,” Marmol said after the game. “We have a kid making his debut, and in between an at-bat, he tells him that he needs to fix his hat and, ‘The kid’s not going to wear his hat like that on my field.’ Last I checked, this is Coors Field, so I took issue with it.”
At the time of the call, St. Louis led 4-2 with one out in the bottom of the sixth inning. Rincon had a 2-0 count against Rockies rookie Cole Carrigg.
Carrigg went on to hit an inside-the-park home run three pitches later. After the next batter singled, Marmol replaced Rincon with Justin Bruihland, who approached Eddings, appearing to adjust his cap. Eddings then tossed Marmol from the game.
St. Louis ultimately came back to win the game, 7-6.