Quote:
Originally Posted by Eastshire
You need to watch it again. DiMuro signals out after Wise gets up with a closed glove. I agree that if another umpire knew that the ball hadn't been caught they should get it right. However, there's no way any of the other umpires knew it hadn't been caught. Yes, a fan held up a ball, but they had no way of knowing it was the ball and not a ball thrown into the stands earlier.
One of these days, baseball is going to get dragged out of the dark ages of each umpire is an island, but that doesn't mean we can't call out cheating when it happens (and besides, I'm not an umpire at all anymore, so whatever hypothetical standard you're proposing doesn't apply to me).
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I just went back and watched it again very carefully. Wise was simply trying to get out of that "hole" he had fallen in with his glove on his hand in a very natural sideways position when DiMuro signaled the out. He didn't make any kind of motion to "present" a closed glove to the umpire. I think we're splitting hairs here (and I do indeed enjoy a spirited debate), but I respectfully disagree that Wise did anything wrong or misleading as he climbed back across the wall and onto the field. In even Little League, fielders are taught to raise the glove and "present" the ball to the umpire after a catch like that. Wise did nothing of the sort. As far as your statement that the ball held high by the fan in the red shirt could have been just any ball, I'm sorry, that's just lawyer talk. Either way, the other umpires should have stepped in and looked in Wise's glove. BUT, this is a classic case of Monday morning quarterbacking here. It's easy for us to dissect the play frame by frame, but it's another thing to be in DiMuro and Wise's shoes as it was happening.
(BTW, I have never liked the Yankees. I'd love to call Wise a cheater, but that's just not right to say in this case.)