Minor league manager Joe Mikulik unleashes another classic meltdown

The maestro of managerial meltdowns is back again with another classic hit.

Minor league manager Joe Mikulik, who's currently working in the Texas Ranger organization as the skipper for the Double-A Frisco RoughRiders, unleashed the latest tantrum in his apparently on-going series during Tuesday's game against the Midland RockHounds.

In happened during the fifth inning on a horribly blown call at home plate. Midland catcher Bruce Maxwell flat out dropped the baseball, which meant he never placed a legal tag on the runner racing home from third base. Despite the baseball visibly laying on the ground in front of Maxwell, home plate Ron Teague ruled the runner out.

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Naturally, this brought out Mikulik, who had a clear shot of the baseball sitting on the ground. He demanded an explanation and pushed for Teague to get help from the other two members of his crew, Clay Park and Clayton Hamm. After a brief huddle, the call was not reversed, which immediately sent Mikulik off the deep end.

If you're wondering why he's wearing a helmet, most minor league managers also served as third base coach. That's the first item that went flying. Then he popped a couple buttons on his jersey before the customary kicking of dirt over home plate, which has become a Joe Mikulik staple.

Mikulik then added a new element to his meltdown with the removal and subsequent spiking of both shoes. Then he punted one shoe and tossed the other again for good measure.

As usual, this escalated quickly. Then, just as quickly, Mikulik excused himself from the field, but not before tossing the dugout garbage can on the field.

That's called getting your money's worth, and that's what Mikulik manages to do basically every time he's ejected. It's not exactly behavior we encourage, mind you, but it always gets people talking and comparing his past meltdowns with the latest meltdown.

By our count this is the fourth such episode recorded on video. As good as this was, Mikulik still has a long way to go to top last season's episode with the Class A Myrtle Beach Pelicans, when he added a running slide into home plate and striptease to his routine.

A more advanced and graceful striptease than that of Torii Hunter, we might add.

For comparison's sake, here's Mikulik's first recorded meltdown from 2006. 

And now the other from 2012.

After spending 11 seasons in the minors as a player, Mikulik is now in his 16th season as manager. Over the years, he's compiled a 1,083-988 record, which qualifies him as a success. But despite that success, it's looking more and more like his legacy in baseball will forever be tied to these moments.

Despite the effort he puts into his meltdowns, we're guessing that wasn't his long term plan.

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Mark Townsend is a writer for Big League Stew on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at bigleaguestew@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter! Follow @Townie813