MLB was anxious to avoid a repeat of such embarrassing snafus as the fifth inning of Game 4 in the American League Championship Series between the New York Yankees and the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim.
In the inning's key play, the Yankees' Jorge Posada was caught in a rundown between home and third base. Angels catcher Mike Napoli ran Posada back toward third, where Yankees infielder Robinson Cano already had advanced as a result of the play. Posada appeared to run past the base, as if ceding third to Cano, but Cano was not standing on the bag either. Napoli alertly tagged both men, and millions of TV viewers assumed the Angels had completed a head's-up double play.
But not umpiring crew chief Tim McClelland. Standing next to the bag at third, McClelland ruled only Posada was out, leading to a humiliating post-game press conference in which McClelland was forced to acknowledge he may have blown the call.
Hard to Tell the Difference in World Series Calls So Far
The undeclared double play, as well as two other highly questionable calls during that game, probably didn't influence the final score too significantly – the Yankees trounced the Halos that night, 10-1. But the 2009 World Series has been dominated by outstanding starting pitching, and in the Yankees' narrow 3-1 victory over the Philadelphia Phillies Oct. 29, 2009, that evened the Series at one win apiece, it could be argued that at least two dubious decisions by the officials may have affected the outcome of the game.
So far, it's hard to tell much difference between the hand-picked Series umpires and the ones who presided over the earlier playoff rounds.
Was Phillies' Chase Utley Out or Safe?
In the eighth inning of World Series Game 2, the Phillies, down by two runs, were mounting a determined comeback against the Yankees' Mariano Rivera, baseball's most intimidating closer. The rally ended, however, when Phils' second baseman Chase Utley grounded into a double play – or at least, that's what first base umpire Brian Gorman said.
Because Utley had hustled down the line to first base and TV's unblinking eye, as well as dozens of replays, showed Utley clearly had beaten the throw. Had Gorman called what he'd seen instead of what he assumed, Utley would have been safe and the Phillies' Ryan Howard, one of the game's most spectacular power hitters, would have come up to face Rivera with men on first and third and two outs.
The outcome of the entire game could have turned on that classic matchup. But we'll never know.
Phillies manager Charlie Manuel didn't equivocate in his post-game press conference: "Utley was safe," he declared.
Ryan Howard's 'Line Drive' Catch
It may not have mattered, though, if another key play earlier in the game had been called correctly. In the sixth inning, the Yanks' Johnny Damon hit a sinking line drive to first base. Howard snagged the ball off the ground and immediately threw to second – a clear, instinctive signal that he believed he hadn't caught the ball cleanly.
Howard's throw to second sailed wide, and all runners were assumed to be safe. But Gorman didn't see it that way. Although replays showed dirt kicking up in front of Howard's glove before the ball found his glove, Gorman ruled Howard caught the ball and signaled a double play when the ball was fired back to first.
In fairness, the latter call was a split-second play and Gorman was in a difficult position to see whether the ball landed in Howard's glove without bouncing. But umpires are paid to make such calls correctly, especially on a stage as momentous as the World Series.
Commissioner Bud Selig repeatedly has said that he is opposed to the idea of using instant replay beyond its current applications to determine if a home run was fair or foul, or if it cleared the fence. But the technology exists for managers to challenge questionable calls made in the heat of battle, just as in football, and have them confirmed or overturned through instant replay.
As two evenly-matched lefthanders, Yankees veteran Andy Pettitte and rising Phillies star Cole Hamels, squared off in Game 3 – just the second time in history a World Series game will be played on Halloween – and the teams' respective aces, New York's C.C. Sabathia and Philly's Cliff Lee, prepared to toe the slab again in the Series, baseball fans can only hope the umpires will provide more treats than tricks in the games remaining.
Jimmy McFarlin - Hello there! My name is Jimmy McFarlin, and like my wife likes to say, I have the experience of an old man and the enthusiasm of a young ...
