Parent accused of punching umpire during baseball game at Osceola County school

OSCEOLA COUNTY, Fla. — A man was arrested after he punched an umpire during a baseball game last month at Liberty High School near Kissimmee, the Osceola County Sheriff’s Office said.

>>> STREAM CHANNEL 9 EYEWITNESS NEWS LIVE <<<

Investigators said the incident happened April 18 after a player began arguing with an umpire and the umpire told the player to calm down.

Jorge Aponte Gonzalez, the player’s parent, became upset with the umpire, who is a disabled veteran.

“The parent left the bleachers and punched the 63-year-old umpire in the back of the head,” the Sheriff’s Office said in a news release.

Read: Little League sentences argumentative parents to umpire duty

Sheriff Marcos Lopez said Gonzalez, who knocked out the umpire, had previously gotten upset during games but was not violent.

Investigators said he left the school before a deputy arrived.

“There’s no reason to take things to this level,” Lopez said. “This is no way to do this.”

Read: Champion U.S. Olympic sprinters Tori Bowie, 32, Calvin Davis, 51, have died

Gonzalez was charged with battery on a sports official and disruption of a school function.

Click here to download the free WFTV news and weather apps, click here to download the WFTV Now app for your smart TV and click here to stream Channel 9 Eyewitness News live.

©2023 Cox Media Group