Selig blows the call worse than umpire on ‘imperfect’ game
Umpire Jim Joyce was still in tears Thursday when Detroit's Armando Galarraga and Cleveland coach Tim Tolman brought out the lineup cards. (Detroit Free Press)
Let’s start with this: Umpires and referees make mistakes all the time that affect the outcomes of games, even championships.
We saw it when Don Denkinger blew a call at first base in the 1985 World Series. We saw it when Colorado scored a touchdown on its “fifth down” of a game against Missouri in 1990, leading to a split the national championship that season with Georgia Tech. We saw it when the Dallas Stars won the Stanley Cup finals over Buffalo on a triple overtime goal by Brett Hull (who was standing in the goal crease at the time, a goal that similarly was disallowed all during that season).
Unfortunately, it’s just not feasible to reverse bad calls that impact who wins and who loses.
Never count on this man to do the right thing.
But what happened Wednesday night is different. An umpire, Jim Joyce, blew a call at first base that prevented Detroit Tigers pitcher Armando Galarraga from throwing a perfect game against Cleveland. That is not in dispute. This is one case where commissioner Bud Selig could have done the right thing and reversed a mistake. He could have done this without affecting the outcome of the game because the Tigers were going to win anyway.
We’re talking about one out. Selig can’t change one out?
Or was it that important for the Indians’ Jason Donald — who has spent most of his five seasons in the minor leagues — to go 1-for-3 instead of 0-3? Because, Bud, dude, did you see the look on Donald’s face after the play? He was embarrassed himself about being called safe by Joyce.
Selig just blew the call. He blew the call worse than Joyce blew the call. Joyce made a spur-of-the-moment decision that he later admitted was wrong. Selig had a day to think about this. He could have changed the final out call and nobody — NOBODY — would have had a dispute.
Fact is, it probably would have given Jim Joyce, who was still in tears Thursday, some peace of mind.
Selig’s statement was accurate: “While the human element has always been an integral part of baseball, it is vital that mistakes on the field be addressed. Given last night’s call and other recent events, I will examine our umpiring system, the expanded use of instant replay and all other related features.”
But what he left out was a rational explanation as to why that single play could not have been overturned. The reason is obvious: There is none.
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187 comments Add your comment
wawel78
June 3rd, 2010
6:12 pm
no, it’s not next. I have found 2 exact scenarios where an umpire’s ruling has affected a perfect game on the last out. So please feel free to keep dismissing but it’s the same argument.
Jeff Schultz
June 3rd, 2010
6:13 pm
JoeV and Kane337 — Thanks.
Jeff Schultz
June 3rd, 2010
6:14 pm
Mitchell: 4 1/2 games? Seriously? Does something think there are going to be 17 replay challenges? That’s the dumbest thing I’ve heard yet.
wawel78
June 3rd, 2010
6:14 pm
and to me it’s idiotic to want to change a wrong call in a meaningless game but you, Jeff, think you shouldn’t change a wrong call in one of the most meangingful games in a baseball season? Always opinion but that makes zero sense to me.
Jeff Schultz
June 3rd, 2010
6:15 pm
GCS — I still don’t get the “can of worms” (or Pandora’s Box, choose your cliche) argument.
Jeff Schultz
June 3rd, 2010
6:17 pm
Wawel78 — Meaningless to who?
BobDawg
June 3rd, 2010
6:18 pm
My Dad & I have been going back and forth on this all day…. But he got to me when he said there was a 28th batter that did come to bat…. Say that batter was Buck Belue who had just gotten called up from the minors, went to bat, grounded out and was sent down to the minors again never to grace The Show again… Do you now take away his at bat???? (By the way, Buck never did make it to The Majors, I believe…Chew on that for a while….)
wawel78
June 3rd, 2010
6:19 pm
meaningless compared to a game 6 WS game.
Didn’t expect you to respond regarding the other two games.
wawel78
June 3rd, 2010
6:21 pm
here Jeff, let me repost. I’ll await for your blog about the travesty of both games:
On July 4, 1908, Hooks Wiltse of the New York Giants hit Philadelphia Phillies pitcher George McQuillan on a 2–2 count in a scoreless game—the only time a 0–0 perfect game has been broken up by the 27th batter. Umpire Cy Rigler later admitted that he should have called the previous pitch strike 3. Wiltse pitched on, winning 1–0; his ten-inning no-hitter set a record for longest complete game no-hitter that has been tied twice but never broken.
On September 2, 1972, Milt Pappas of the Chicago Cubs walked San Diego Padres pinch hitter Larry Stahl on a borderline 3–2 pitch. Pappas finished with a no-hitter. The umpire, Bruce Froemming, was in his second year; he went on to a 37-year career in which he umpired a record 11 no-hitters. Pappas believed he had struck out Stahl, and years later continued to bear ill will toward Froemming
Jeff Francoeur
June 3rd, 2010
6:25 pm
Just saw you on the news, Jeff….lookin good!
Rob
June 3rd, 2010
6:27 pm
wawel78, your comments are just as meaningless
wawel78
June 3rd, 2010
6:32 pm
Rob – I would agree. I’m arguing with people on a sports blog. Pretty meaningless.
Mitchell
June 3rd, 2010
6:47 pm
Jeff, I was being a bit of a jokester there as I am wont to do.
I definitely do not want four hour games in case that was a little unclear and I am pretty ambivalent about instant replay.
What I want to know is why the dumbasses just can’t confer with one another on a play like that or any play where there are multiple perspectives.
The second base umpire had to have a great vantage point to see the guy was safe. Why can’t he just run over than and be like, “yeah, he was out.”
Either way, I’m finding it harder and harder to stomach completely random dudes like Dallas Braden and Gallaraga throwing (or almost throwing) no-hitters/ perfect games when Smoltz, Maddux and Glavine don’t even have a single no-hitter among them.
It’s not right. Anyway, I was just trying to be a rabble rouser, you know, for the hell of it.
If you still say my previous comment was the dumbest thing you’ve ever read, then I can’t fault you for that.
Peace out.
Train Wreck Bystander
June 3rd, 2010
6:54 pm
Spot on.
The kicker is that it was to be the last play of the game. Reversing the umpire’s call the day after would not require the teams to replay the end of a game from a certain point. It would do nothing except correct a heinous wrong. It was the last freaking play of the game!
Shame on you Bud Selig.
Rick Leaman
June 3rd, 2010
6:56 pm
Bud Selig is a spineless bastard! I knew him in Milwaukee when his father gave him his Chevy dealership and he managed to run it into the ground. And I played golf several times with his second in command, Bob DuPuy, who I thought had more integrity than he does now, after sucking on the Bud Selig, MLB tit!!!
wawel78
June 3rd, 2010
6:57 pm
it would also take a hit away from Jason Donald.
wawel78
June 3rd, 2010
6:58 pm
by the way, Dale Murphy has 398 career home runs. He’s a swell guy. Shame on you Selig for not bumping him up to 400! Spineless!
wawel78
June 3rd, 2010
7:00 pm
While we’re at it, Sam Rice is only 13 hits away from 3000. Can’t we just give the hits to him?
wawel78
June 3rd, 2010
7:01 pm
can’t we give Bobby Mathews 3 more wins? He’s so close!
Jimmy
June 3rd, 2010
7:04 pm
Selig has been and always will be a joke as commissioner.
It is plain and simple…this is a unique situation.
To overturn the call at this point would not affect the outcome of the game.
It would put Galarraga’s name in the record books though.
Simple.
The only precedent set would be for blown last out’s in a no-hitter.
shane
June 3rd, 2010
7:06 pm
We saw it when Colorado scored a touchdown on its “fifth down” of a game against Missouri in 1990, leading to a split the national championship that season with Georgia Tech.
Tech didn’t win the title in 1990. Colorado did. It won the AP only one that counts. Tech didn’t play anybody all year and then won the Citrus Bowl and won some ULI or OPI title or something. I do know this. The organization that gave Tech that title doesn’t even exist anymore.
Wonder why?
wawel78
June 3rd, 2010
7:06 pm
not true Jimmy. Here, i’ll repost:
On July 4, 1908, Hooks Wiltse of the New York Giants hit Philadelphia Phillies pitcher George McQuillan on a 2–2 count in a scoreless game—the only time a 0–0 perfect game has been broken up by the 27th batter. Umpire Cy Rigler later admitted that he should have called the previous pitch strike 3. Wiltse pitched on, winning 1–0; his ten-inning no-hitter set a record for longest complete game no-hitter that has been tied twice but never broken.
On September 2, 1972, Milt Pappas of the Chicago Cubs walked San Diego Padres pinch hitter Larry Stahl on a borderline 3–2 pitch. Pappas finished with a no-hitter. The umpire, Bruce Froemming, was in his second year; he went on to a 37-year career in which he umpired a record 11 no-hitters. Pappas believed he had struck out Stahl, and years later continued to bear ill will toward Froemming
kool$kat
June 3rd, 2010
7:19 pm
Selig sux. That said, at least have the official scorer change the hit to an error and give him a no-hitter!!! I know official scorings have been changed after the fact in many instances!
kool$kat
June 3rd, 2010
7:20 pm
And Pappas deserved benefit of the doubt on a borderline call in the last out of a perfect game, just like Galarraga did. Stupid umps.
DC Braves Fan
June 3rd, 2010
7:45 pm
So, sure there are all sorts of scenarios you could play out: “well, if you reverse this call, then you open up Pandora’s box and you have to reverse every wrong call, etc. . . .” And while thats not a bad point, I dont think its a compelling one either. The fear of unknown hypotheticals should not necessarily be an excuse for inactivity, especially since there is a pretty clear cut opportunity to right a wrong. It should be the excuse for thinking through decisions pretty thoroughly and bounding those decisions explicitly, but to say that to change this one play means that you open up an uncontrollable can of worms is, I think, too easy and ultimately wrong.
Look, with the exception of one person who posted earlier who thinks the guy was safe (he has very much not safe), we can all agree that the call was wrong (and by the way, the Commissioner can uphold protests!). Why not, if you are Bud Selig, simply say this:
“That call was wrong. It was the last out. There are no possible cascading effects of the call. None. Zero. Zip. The next guy made out and there was no effect on the result and only on the offensive statistics of two players (the player who was wrongly credited the hit and the fella who made out after him). We feel in the best interests of the game that that in this one case, we are going to overturn a grossly wrong call. As far as MLB is concerned, this is the only current means of redressing a historcially significant wrong. We do not anticipate nor do we welcome further interventions of this kind and to ensure that we have assembled a blue ribbon panel led by George Will (kidding, kidding) to determine the best system for redressing such grievances during the game in the future”
wawel78
June 3rd, 2010
7:57 pm
I don’t feel it’s in the best interests of baseball. And I’m not 100% certain of this, but aren’t protests only in the case of potentially winning or losing the game?
"Chef" Tim Dix
June 3rd, 2010
8:04 pm
Enter your comments here
CajunStorm
June 3rd, 2010
8:04 pm
Yo Jeff, I’m a lil late to the discussion because of an aftrenoon pre-Lakers-Celtics and Braves-Dodgers late-nite. But I have to say this debate has been on my mind since yasterday. The only Real argument I can present without the emotional right and wrong angle is a scenario in the NBA that just took place.
When Kendrick Perkins of the Celtics was ejected in Game 5 for 2nd Technical rules stated that he would be automatically suspened for Game 6. It was obvious it was a terrible call and although he was ejected and the result had an undeniable effect on the result of the game the NBA Commissioners office reviewed the call and REVERSED it. As this reversal had NO bering on the outcome of Game 5 the NBA corrected a mistake.
Therefore, since the effect on the game would not change the outcome in this MOST UNIQUE set of circumstance, Good Ol Bud SHOULD HAVE CORRECTED a WRONG!!
"Chef" Tim Dix
June 3rd, 2010
8:08 pm
Next time this crew rolls into town, the Motor City needs to have a “Fan Appreciation Night- Detroit Rock City” brought to you inpart by the City of Philidephia. IF you smell what the Chef is cookin’…
wawel78
June 3rd, 2010
8:11 pm
the difference cajun is the commissioner has that right in the NBA. I’m not sure the commissioner does. And I didn’t notice, did they take that point away for the technical foul? Didn’t think so.
Greg T
June 3rd, 2010
8:14 pm
Why would we expect Selig to get this call right? He’s gotten ever other call wrong. He is an idiot.
jeminal
June 3rd, 2010
8:43 pm
This Bitter-After-Taste rates up there with the Baseball Player STRIKE.
… the game should have been REVERSE . Mr. SELIG !!!
… America should BOYCOTT the ALLSTAR game.
… replay needs to be expanded,
Mr. Bud Selig, should go too .
Albert
June 3rd, 2010
9:12 pm
Wrong call Jeff. Will your editors give you an instant redo to get this right and recall the print editions in the morning so they can be changed?
Sports is both competition and entertainment. So what if a blown call costs somebody the Superbowl, World Series, or World Cup? It’s all about the competition and the human element makes it even that more interesting. I’ve been on the wrong side of many bad calls and for the bad calls that went my way I was still on the wrong side.
Keep sports in perspective. We tend to forget these are just games for fun and entertainment until tragedy strikes– then they become irrelevant for awhile.
This matter is irrelevant.
gunter
June 3rd, 2010
9:41 pm
You’re all wrong on this one Jeff……….It was a blown call but that’s baseball. There have always been blown calls in baseball, there aren’t any “do overs”. I’m no Bud Selig fan but we don’t want him reversing calls on the field……would open up big can of worms. Just an unfortunate turn of events, but that’s just baseball and that is what makes it the greatest game in America.
MitchC
June 3rd, 2010
10:01 pm
Jeff, I agree with you, and I just told Mark Bradley so. I know he agrees with Selig’s decision, but, here is my feeling:
We all know that umps, like all of us, are human, and will blow calls. They have to make split second decisions, and dont have the benefit of TV replays. That having been said, the call in this case came on what should have been the last out of the game, in what should have been a perfect game. The ump blew it. TV replays showed it, millions of fans saw it, and the ump himself apologized.
The fact that the call was the difference between a perfect game and not a perfect game is the most significant thing to me. Why should Galaragga be denied a perfect game, just because the ump blew the call, and just because Selig is too spineless to change it.
Bad decison by Selig, and one, to me, that just defines his tenure, as a lousy commissioner.
jesse james
June 3rd, 2010
10:07 pm
These people that want the call reversed, would you reverse the call had the runner been really safe and the umpire called him out?
Coach (2011 or Bust)
June 3rd, 2010
10:43 pm
I’ll agree to disagree. Bud Selig is correct in not stepping in and changing the call but allowing the wrong call by Joyce to stand opens Pandora’s box. Video replay will be expanded as a result, there bye removing some of the human element in the game of baseball. Which defeats the very purpose of allowing the incorrect call to stand.
jeminal
June 4th, 2010
12:41 am
All of this Pandora’s box bulls##t, and the deluge of going
back to review video from prior games is horses##t.
This travesty of justice should be REVERSED today, and changes
put in place to prevent in the future.
For Bud Selig, he should resign or better yet — be replaced.
wawel78
June 4th, 2010
1:29 am
I’m just glad Amsterdam Sam still has respect for you.
STRETCH
June 4th, 2010
2:41 am
STRETCH
June 4th, 2010
2:16 am
I wonder what would happen if someones kid came home with an F on his final exam and it turns out that the teacher grading it misread the answers but said the he/she would not overturn that call?
Or what happens when the hospital gives someone the wrong baby and the doctor says i will not correct that mistake? Hmmm….
I know its not that serious but comeone everybody from here to China saw this and the Ump even admited it. And Selig is trying to keep fans, not keepin em that way!
But you know what, Gallaragha did the best thing he could do in that situation(not saying i would have), but by his demeanor he was cool and calm which all this does is magnify how flawed this game is.
And i dont care who you are, you cannot tell me that a 70 year old man is going to keep up with these players. I mean how many times do we watch the ref/umps in the NFL get rolled over by the back coming out of the backfield?
Im not discriminating, just saying nobody is perfect, so they are going to make mistakes but why not help these guys out when they do!
HATinGA
June 4th, 2010
4:51 am
Whats sad is within 1min after the play the only people who hadnt seen the replay and knew for sure he was out was the ones who had to make the call! The people who say replay would be to slow are saying lets get it wrong, but quick! Human element = code words for crappy callls!
obee
June 4th, 2010
6:18 am
It also forces the umpire to live with the horrible call for the rest of his career. Given the way he handled this situation afterward, the ump deserves better.
Braves Fan
June 4th, 2010
7:25 am
This yo-yo has done nothing for baseball. What makes you think he would do the right thing?
Next hitter
June 4th, 2010
8:49 am
If this had been the other way around, with Donald safe but called out, what would we be saying?
I think the managers should have a challenge like in the NFL. Use it over and over until you’re wrong. No review unless the manager challenges. No checking the reply before you challenge – gotta do it on your own. If you’re wrong, then no more challenges that game.
jesse james
June 4th, 2010
9:06 am
Let’s just go back in the game a changed every marginal ball and strike. You people need to quit feeding off your emotions.
jesse james
June 4th, 2010
9:06 am
I do agree Bud Selig is a joke!
Billball
June 4th, 2010
9:15 am
Wrong Jeff. A perfect game is perfect in eveery way, hitting, fielding, umpiring. Like a hole in one, just a miracle. Don’t legislate this.
bvillebaron
June 4th, 2010
9:39 am
Jeff:
Wow, I didn’t realize you were that sensitive. And oh by the way, I didn’t tell you what you could or could not write, just that your postion was not defensible. Apparently you feel that you are entitled to your opinion, but I am not entitled to mine. Grow up!
DC Bravesfan
June 4th, 2010
10:13 am
Couldn’t disagree more, changing this out sets a terrible precedent. There is no question, this sucks for Galarraga, and it sucks for Joyce. BUT, it does prove one point – Pitching a perfect game is extremely hard to do, it has to be PERFECT. Yes, that means the umps have to be perfect, the defense has to be perfect, and the offense has to be perfect. IT’S NOT JUST THE PITCHER! And this game proves it, and it’s better that way.
Will it bring about instant replay? Maybe, but it’s not like Galarraga won’t be remembered for what he did. Besides, no one owes him the title of pitching a perfect game, it’s not an entitlement. It’s something you earn, and something people around you help you earn.
DMac
June 4th, 2010
10:16 am
JS- Thank you for injecting some sanity and common sense into this issue.