What A Sham Ending To A Game!
While Washington is bogged down in debt ceiling debates, I prefer to spend time thinking about baseball. But the ending this morning to the Braves-Pirates game that began last night is horrible.
I was following it last night as it went into extra innings and then extra extra innings. Or as i call it, free baseball.
The game was tied at 3 into 19 innings. Braves runner Julio Lugo was running from third base and was clearly tagged out a couple of feet from home plate. But home plate umpire Jerry Meals, presumably exhausted after almost 7 hours on the job, called him safe.
You can watch the play here. Or see the picture there to the right.
People will take this opportunity to demand instant replay, which would take away almost all of the beauty of the game. I'd just like to call for holding umpires accountable when they mess up. This is a dramatic mess up. He should be shunned. "Jerry Meals" should become the new phrase we use to mean "unbelievably embarrassing error."
OK, maybe that's a bit much. But we should make a lesson out of this. I'm just glad it wasn't my Cardinals who lost a game on a bad call or I'd be organizing street protests right now.
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Sep '10
Re: What A Sham Ending To A Game!
Mollie Hemingway, Ed.
People will take this opportunity to demand instant replay, which would take away almost all of the beauty of the game.
It would take all of two minutes to have an MLB official in a booth somewhere make the proper call.
Instant replay makes way too much sense, which is why the dinosaur sport (a sport that I love) will never allow it.
Oct '10
Re: What A Sham Ending To A Game!
"People will take this opportunity to demand instant replay, which would take away almost all of the beauty of the game."
Because there's nothing more beautiful in sport than a blown call by the arbiters of impartiality and fairness that leads to a competitor being awarded an undeserved victory, especially, in this case, after a grueling 19-inning affair with playoff implications. Beauty to behold, indeed!
At least, that's why I watch. :-)
Oct '10
Re: What A Sham Ending To A Game!
What a travesty.
Sep '10
Re: What A Sham Ending To A Game!
I'm not a baseball fan, never was. I used to watch football, basketball and hockey but eventually soured on those because of the attitude of players and owners - the whole overblown sham of pro sports.
Any season that requires 180 games to determine who is best (not even) reveals there is a strong element of luck involved and the number of games played accounts for that element. So one team had bad luck with a tired umpire. Maybe baseball could find a way to end games like this faster. Some kind of slug-fest inning Yeah that's it!
Edited on Jul 27, 2011 at 6:51amRe: What A Sham Ending To A Game!
Instant replay would take care of horrible calls like this. But it would also slow down an already too slow game. And I worry it would mean that umpires would be held less accountable. The incentive to get a play right would be decreased because there'd be an easy fix if you messed it up.
I hate bad calls, obviously. I just don't want instant replay to slow down the game or make umps more careless.
Jun '11
Re: What A Sham Ending To A Game!
Mark Belling Fan
Mollie Hemingway, Ed.
People will take this opportunity to demand instant replay, which would take away almost all of the beauty of the game.
It would take all of two minutes to have an MLB official in a booth somewhere make the proper call.
Instant replay makes way too much sense, which is why the dinosaur sport (a sport that I love) will never allow it. · Jul 27 at 6:40am
Actually there already is an MLB official monitoring every game from New York in real time in a system much like the one used by the NHL. However, that official is only allowed to review boundary calls on HR's. It would take no additional manpower to review safe/ out calls at the bases and home plate or fair/ foul calls on the line. It would, however, take a rule change and negotiations with the umpire's union. The call against the Pirates will result in much discussion about expansion of replay just as Jim Joyce's bad call denying Detroit's Armando Galarraga a perfect game did last season.
Jun '10
Re: What A Sham Ending To A Game!
I feel your pain, Mollie. I really do. I felt it that effervescent night of the sixth game. The one where my friend Don Deckinger made his courageous call heard round the world. I still remember the feeling of floating in the air as I, along with 10's of thousands of Royal's fans, jumped in celebration of the comeback victory to tie the series. I remember the next morning, Sunday, preceding that evening's final game, taking a hot air balloon ride with my wife and drinking champagne for breakfast. But goodness it's hard to believe that was just a prelude for the wondrous events about to take place that evening. I believe he was your "Ace". He turned out to be your a s s instead, getting himself thrown out in the first inning as the Royals went on to an easy/breezy final game rout to win the World Series. Consider yourself very lucky to be a Cardinals fan, Mollie. That was the last fond memory I have as a Royals fan.
Edited on Jul 27, 2011 at 7:07amOct '10
Re: What A Sham Ending To A Game!
I'm not sure this is such a travesty. It certainly looks like the kind of play that results in an out 99% of the time. The catcher had the plate blocked, the ball got there early, etc. But -- get the knives out -- it sorta looks like he missed the tag. He swiped at the leg, and it looks like he may have just missed by a millimeter or two. I didn't see the runner's pant leg ruffle as the glove brushed by it.
Don't get me wrong -- there may have been contact, and the call may ultimately have been wrong. But I'm inclined to trust the judgment of the professional standing 3 feet away, watching the play closely, listening for contact, etc -- or at least cut him a break. It isn't like the batter popped a foul ball behind the plate and the ump called a home run. It was a play at the plate requiring judgment of whether a tag was actually made -- rather than just looking like it was made. I think people's perception is being clouded by their expectations, based on seeing thousands of similar plays resulting in outs.
Edited on Jul 27, 2011 at 9:06amOct '10
Re: What A Sham Ending To A Game!
Quick point to head off a potential argument -- the picture at the top of this post (along with all other stills of the tag I've seen) is inconclusive. If it were proof that the tag was made, then these pictures would be proof that the people in them are physically supporting the weight of the Leaning Tower of Pisa.
Also, please don't kill me. I'm not really married to the idea that the call was right. Just trying to -- what's the phrase -- open people's minds, man.
Edited on Jul 27, 2011 at 7:37amRe: What A Sham Ending To A Game!
I understand that pictures can be deceiving but the video is pretty conclusive. I guess it's possible that there was some weird Matrix-style separation of time and space and what not, but even the runner seemed to think he was out (all post-game statements to the contrary notwithstanding!).
Jun '11
Re: What A Sham Ending To A Game!
I love the human element that still exists in baseball, which will inevitably result in mistaken calls. They evoke emotions that make watching sports so fun: frustration when the call goes against your team and giddy relief when the call is in your guys' favor. And deep down, don't a lot of fans root for their manager to get out there and heatedly argue with an umpire about a questionable call? Many Braves fans, like myself, kind of liked the fact that Bobby Cox was ejected from games so often for challenging umpires. Fans at the games would cheer him on when he ambled onto the field to get in an umpire's face and boo with fervency when the umpire had enough.
I fear with too much technology ruling the games, we erode the passion, like that spurs posts like Mollie's, and turn sports into live-action video games.
May '10
Re: What A Sham Ending To A Game!
Lugo (the baserunner) reacted with as much surprise as everyone else.
May '10
Re: What A Sham Ending To A Game!
There's an umpires union? Geez louise, that explains it. And also augurs that the guy won't be called on the carpet for this, as I was hoping.
Guess from now on, he'll get heckled extra hard, which is some justice.
May '10
Re: What A Sham Ending To A Game!
Let's go Braves! After this horrible call in the '91 world series, I say we deserve about a hundred bad calls our way!
Apr '11
Re: What A Sham Ending To A Game!
I'm a Braves fan and I must admit it pains me to win a game like this. I don't think it serves us well in the long run. The umpire must have been thinking "If this guy is out, we play a whole nother inning. If he's safe, we go to sleep. Seems like a simple call."
Jun '11
Re: What A Sham Ending To A Game!
I love the human element that still exists in baseball, which will inevitably result in mistaken calls. They evoke emotions that make watching sports so fun: frustration when the call goes against your team and giddy relief when the call is in your guys' favor. And deep down, don't a lot of fans root for their manager to get out there and heatedly argue with an umpire about a questionable call? Many Braves fans, like myself, kind of liked the fact that Bobby Cox was ejected from games so often for challenging umpires. Fans at the games would cheer him on when he ambled onto the field to get in an umpire's face and boo with fervency when the umpire had enough. I fear with too much technology ruling the games, we erode the passion, like that spurs posts like Mollie's, and turn sports into live-action video games.
May '10
Re: What A Sham Ending To A Game!
Hey, get your facts right! This is how it really happened.
Anyway, on the topic of this thread, I don't think replay would have made a difference in that call. It was the umpire's judgement about Gant's momentum, and whether he fell on his own or was pulled, not a question of timing.
May '10
Re: What A Sham Ending To A Game!
Mollie Hemingway, Ed.
I was following it last night as it went into extra innings and then extra extra innings. Or as i call it, free baseball.
Mollie, that's funny, I've always referred to extra innings as "extra baseball for free!"
May '11
Re: What A Sham Ending To A Game!
5th inning he's out. 19th inning and dead tired umpire he's looking for a reason for the runner to be safe.
May '10
Re: What A Sham Ending To A Game!
Mark Wilson
Hey, get your facts right! This is how it really happened.
Anyway, on the topic of this thread, I don't think replay would have made a difference in that call. It was the umpire's judgement about Gant's momentum, and whether he fell on his own or was pulled, not a question of timing. · Jul 27 at 9:17am
Are you sure it wasn't more like this...
As for instant replay, why add time to an eternal game? Especially when the bad calls and furious arguments add so much to the enjoyment. What would Lou Pinella be famous for if he couldn't throw first base into the outfield?