Poll time: Does blown call reaffirm need for replay?
Buster Posey should have been ruled out on this stolen base attempt in Game 1 (although the call wasn't as obvious as this camera angle might suggest).
SAN FRANCISCO — We have a little time before the Braves attempt to break out offensively against the San Francisco Giants tonight — can they get three hits? — so let’s address the issue that seems to be burning up blogs and message boards: instant replay.
It’s crazy that baseball doesn’t use it to a greater degree. I addressed this in two blogs back in June when Detroit pitcher Armando Galarraga got jobbed out of a perfect game because umpire Jim Joyce blew an obvious call at first base (which he later admitted).
Here’s the blog on baseball’s stubbornness following Joyce’s call.
Here’s the blog on commissioner (still!) Bud Selig’s illogical decision to not overturn the call, which would not have affected the outcome of the game and would’ve righted a wrong.
Back to the Braves. Yes, the Giants’ Buster Posey should’ve been called out on a stolen base attempt in the fourth inning of Game 1, and he eventually scored what would be the game’s lone run. But please, no more whining about how the Braves got robbed.
Second baseman Brooks Conrad didn’t argue the call. Manager Bobby Cox didn’t come out to argue (and he argues everything). Cox explained later: “From the dugout, you can’t see anything and I didn’t see a reaction from our infielders.” And after the Braves lost 1-0, it would have been easy for players to point to that play and complain, but to their credit they didn’t.
Here’s why the Braves lost: They didn’t hit. They didn’t field.
Loading ...Actually, the one amusing thing to come out of the latest ReplayGate was the 180 pulled by Giants manager Bruce Bochy. Bochy had been quoted in an ESPN.com story last month about how he was in favor of baseball expanding its use of replay. Quoting: “I just want to get it right. It’s OK to lose a game if the other team beats you. But if you lose a game because a call goes against you, it’s hard to sleep at night.”
So what did Bochy say after the game Thursday night, given replay would’ve gone against his team? This: “In certain cases, [yes]. But no, plays like this, no, I’m not. You keep the game moving. But I talked about balls maybe down the line, maybe a play at the plate. But, no, you start to slow the game down when you start reviewing every play.”
Yeah. Whatever.
So what are your thoughts on replay use? I’ve put up a poll, but, as always, the floor is yours.
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WEEKLY OPINION/INSIGHT BLOG REPORT, Oct. 8-14
Behind the numbers: Jeff Schultz’s biggest entry about UGA’s 11th arrest had 42,000 page views alone. Mark Bradley’s Braves/Cox coverage did extremely well. Thanks to them both for great Braves playoff and Gonzalez coverage. Among popular entries on Rodney Ho’s TV blog: The View fracas and John Pruitt’s retirement. (Rodney wrote two blog entries and a print story in very short time when the Pruitt story broke.) Chip Towers’ top entry was about a UGA commitment getting kicked off his high school team. (Don’t forget he’s on TV every Friday night.) Jim Galloway cashed in on the news about a Delta baggage handler being found in Afghanistan. (Jim alerted everyone about the stem cell story.) Jennifer Brett’s Buzz boomed when Ryan Seacrest and Julianne Hough showed up to shop at the Midtown Publix AND she has 11,500 Twitter followers. About 10,000 clicked on Jay Bookman’s Philly streaker with a message entry. Bill King got a whopping 17,500 page views on an short entry about the promotional video board at games drowning out the proceedings on the field. Maureen Downey’s Get Schooled had a big response to the meltdown of a teacher. (Maureen has been working on a special editorial page project – see Monday op-ed for the next two weeks). John Kessler’s readers loved his Persian roundup. (Note: The new dining team – John plus three others – starts blogging this coming week on Food and More.) One of the biggest draws on the American Idol blog is anything about Carrie Underwood and Rodney’s entry on her had 23,000 page views alone. The most popular time of year for Rana Cash’s Bargain Hunter blog is beginning: Halloween and holiday gadgets entries gave her a great week. (A reader’s family saved $48 on an aquarium trip by reading a deal on her blog.) Henry Unger’s blogs on cellphone bills and metro foreclosures were tops for him. Mike Luckovich had more than 50,000 views alone on his UGA football player toon, by far the most popular of the week.
Off next week: Rana and Mike are off all week and Chuck is off Friday.
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134 comments Add your comment
Jay
October 8th, 2010
4:52 pm
There’s too much riding on these games to not get the call right.
We don’t know what would have happened had the call been made correctly, but it would have been nice to watch it play out.
Ted M
October 8th, 2010
4:57 pm
Tonight’s Braves lineup. Infante 3B Heyward RF Lee 1B McCann C Cabrera LF Conrad 2B Gonzalez SS Ankiel CF Hanson P
Kwbravesfan
October 8th, 2010
5:01 pm
I think MLB should have instant replay. If the umpire would have called Buster Posey safe, like he knows he was, it would have given the braves a chance to win.
andrew
October 8th, 2010
5:03 pm
NO REPLAY! players and refs/umps are human. Or, why not just review every call and play and take the officials off the field. Sounds silly, right. It is a human game played by humans for human enjoyment. So who’s perfect?
Keith
October 8th, 2010
5:07 pm
Do I blame all of the loss on the Umpire? No, Infante SHOULD have made the play and didn’t.
However, if the ump makes the play, then there is 2 outs with 0 on, and gives us a chance to battle in the bottom of the 9th with the score being tied 0-0. Lincecum most likely leaves the game in the 10th, and hopefully we would have had another chance.
Here’s my deal: I want the RIGHT call made no matter what. Even if it’s against my team, I want the right call to be made.
Get the call right. Period.
Keith
October 8th, 2010
5:07 pm
NFL has the right idea on this. How many times have we seen important momentum calls reversed? NFL has it right. MLB should get it right.
Biggie
October 8th, 2010
5:08 pm
Baseball will never have instant replay as long as the Umps are unionized. This is because the use of replay will illustrate the fact that, with the exception of the homepklate umpire, all others can be replaced by the use of slo-mo and camera’s. Essentially, technology will make the ups obsolete.
For example, lets say that replay is used in all call for fair/foul, calls at bases, and catch/no catch, and home runs. in the first few games, the audience (and the owners who pay the bills) will figure, well, we got it right, and it was fast. Why do we even need those other guys out there if they aren’t calling balls and strikes? The owners would save money, the calls will be correct, and all the umps other than the home plate ump will be obsolete in lss than two sessons.
Nope, aint gonna happen with the umps union in place.
My $.02.
South Georgia
October 8th, 2010
5:09 pm
No excuse for not scoring even one run! Owners, please let the next manager manufacture some runs. Braves have underachieved for years with lack of offfense-several hitting instructors but same inflexible manager.
Braves fan in bama
October 8th, 2010
5:10 pm
Braves fan since 80; I agree with you TP was a stallwart playing and contributed in 1991 =MVP; but being a good player does not make you a good hitting coach. TP lifetime .270 hitter and only three years hitting .300 in the league. But you are right about the lack of leadership and I think that is what is wrong with this team. Go Braves; get one tonight.
SquillDog
October 8th, 2010
5:25 pm
Why do people continue to say moronic things like, “they’ll slow the game down if they review every play.” Do they review every play in the NFL? No, coaches challenge! Give baseball managers two challenges (and add one if they win both like the NFL) and automatic reviews from the 9th inning on. At worst you’ll get 4 reviews a game. One minute per review. You add FOUR minutes…FOUR MINTUES! Am I that much smarter than the rest of these people? I guess those 15 years of High School are paying off.
Brother John
October 8th, 2010
5:27 pm
If you can’t bunt, you shouldn’t be in the Major Leagues. This is Little League stuff. In this kind of game, I’d bunt anybody over — be it #2 hitter, #3 hitter, or # 4 hitter. Bobby goes by the book, and thankfully, that book will soon have its final chapter. And why not adjust?? “The Freak” hardly ever through a pitch that was a strike! And the Braves are up there wailing away at ball after ball after ball after ball after ball after ball after ball after ball after ball after ball after ball after ball after ball after ball after ball after ball after ball after ball after ball after ball after ball after ball after ball after ball after ball after ball after ball after ball after ball after ball after. Maybe you get the idea. With any plate discipline, he would have walked 14 guys instead of striking out 14 batters. I feel bad for Dereck Lowe. A true gamer in the big ones! If anyone can explain to me why proffessional, experienced, multi-millionare ball players swing at pitches, not only low, but a good two feet out of the strike zone — or one up at eye level or over their head — please explain it to me so I can educate myself! Out of the 14 KOs, I’d like to know how many were actually strikes????
idot
October 8th, 2010
5:32 pm
Biggie@5:08………This comment is meant as a joke, right?
Alan
October 8th, 2010
5:41 pm
Hey Jeff on your sack schultz, it has Mich St as the home team, but the game is at Michigan. Just an FYI.
Pete
October 8th, 2010
5:43 pm
Saying replay is needed in MLB is like saying politicians are crooked. EVERY sane, rational & normal human being agrees but NOTHING is ever done about it.
It’s like crying into the wind.
Nativebird
October 8th, 2010
5:50 pm
Yes. On all calls. Get over it Umps. Get it right.
wawel78
October 8th, 2010
5:52 pm
Melky Cabrera is our #5 hitter tonight. No need to bother my wife with watching baseball after this weekend.
CopyandPaste
October 8th, 2010
5:53 pm
BIG RULE: If you know the umpire is wrong – ARGUE THE CALL!!!! One reason why the Sox beat the Yanks when they came back from 0-3 down was that they argued EVERY CALL they thought the umpires got wrong. What’s the worse that could happen?? Maybe that the bad call would stand?
Arron
October 8th, 2010
5:57 pm
Could it be MLB and the tv networks want a west coast team to advance. Nah that would never happen.
jerry
October 8th, 2010
5:58 pm
I keep hearing missed calls are a part of the game. I watched baseball back in the 50s, 60s & 70s and the umpires were a lot better back then. Now the umps want to be a part of the game, reward the favorite pitchers and squeeze the strike zone on others. Now missed calls are not a part of the game they are what’s wrong with the game and with all the technology we have they should get them all right.
Jacketsfan24
October 8th, 2010
5:58 pm
The excuses baseball gives for not using replay are pathetic. Baseball is already the slowest sport known to man, so the whole bit about slowing the game down is pretty weak. And its not like football where there are multiple things to worry about on the replay, it would litterally take all of ten seconds to see whether or not a runner’s foot was on a base or not. I’m all for replay on the basepaths (and a new commisioner as well)!
Delbert D.
October 8th, 2010
6:04 pm
Sorry, no on replays. The game wasn’t designed with that in mind. The worst of all calls was when the Minnesota 1B-man literally wrestled Atlanta’s runner off 1st base in the world series in the Metrodome. Win some, lose some. Are you going to replay every ball and strike call? Might as well televise a computer game and save a bundle on player salaries. Replays should be used only to determine whether umpires are the take.
GSU Eagle 91
October 8th, 2010
6:59 pm
No way…
Can you imagine a Steve Trachsel pitched game with instant replay as well? We are talking about a 5 hour event!
I would be for it IF the games were speeded up a bit. The strike zone would be called as the numbers to the knees, and so things would move along.
On this particular event…If the braves could score a run or two, we wouldn’t be concerned about a missed call!
kool$kat
October 8th, 2010
7:13 pm
I say put one ump on the field with a headset and put 3 in the booth watching 3 different monitors and they tell the onfield ump what to call on EVERY PLAY!!! Balls and strikes will be called by something like Questec or that box that WTBS is using. Use lights to signal strikes, balls on the field behind home plate and on other walls for all to see. We have the technology, USE IT!!!
Of course that would take away the league’s ability to tilt the games as they see fit….or would it??? HMMMMmmmmmm
kool$kat
October 8th, 2010
7:16 pm
Or let onfield umps make calls that could be instantly reversed by officials in booth watching replay. No delay, because we watch replays all the time between pitches etc.
Josh
October 8th, 2010
7:36 pm
Wow see the reds get a double, bunt him over and then a sac fly. Ah but the booby doesn’t want to do that. They do this with a 3 run lead. This is a perfect example of why he’s been a failure in the post season.
Ryan
October 8th, 2010
7:39 pm
You idiots saying no are the same morons who said it would ruin football and slow those games.
You act like every play would be reviewed. Your argument holds nothing.
Every major sport has replay except for baseball and soccer..the 2 most boring sports on the planet.
Yeah keep missing those calls. It’s no big deal. Riiight.
Roger
October 8th, 2010
7:51 pm
Reds make 2 errors in a row but no runs
Unfair weather fan
October 8th, 2010
9:09 pm
Can the Braves rebound?
Uh, you want the profanity-free answer?
Two letters
TN_BravesFan
October 9th, 2010
1:10 am
Look at the Wiki article on Paul Emmel http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paul_Emmel.
Lifelong Dawg
October 9th, 2010
6:12 am
Chris @ 2:28PM on 10/8: “YOU ALSO CANNOT WIN IF YOU DON’T SCORE.” That’s the point. SF wouldn’t have SCORED if the proper call had been made, ergo they might not have WON (and certainly would not have with the gift run they received as a result of this egregious call). Had the Giants scored at some other point in the game, which they didn’t, it would be easier to just blow this awful call off as one of many. But that’s not how it worked out; it was THE difference. Everyone seems to forget that SF had only 5 hits, and that the ‘pen shut them down completely.
Lifelong Dawg
October 9th, 2010
6:16 am
TN_BravesFan,
That’s funny stuff about Emmel on Wikipedia.
Bobbymahlon
October 9th, 2010
9:41 pm
I agree with Abnerish on instant recalls. LETS GET THESE CALLS RIGHT.
Jay
October 9th, 2010
11:43 pm
Happened again today in the Rays-Rangers game. The 2nd base umpire’s position on a stolen base is to be on the infield grass on the first base side of 2nd base. He gets blocked from view by the runners back as he slides. He cant’t see the runner’s feet or lower leg. In both cases, the Posey play and the play today, his view of the runner’s feet was blocked. Why can’t he be behind second on the first base side of second base?
Albert
October 10th, 2010
1:05 am
Jeff Shutlz– why does the AJC keep you around?? It must be your ability to create controversy which causes the editors believe draws readers that wouldn’t ordinarily visit. The problem is that I never learn anything from our posts and articles. I stopped reading most of them when I determined that your positions were frequently contrary to rationale thought.