Brian O'Nora

[Larry1953]

Originally Posted by briancurtin

Do you know who the replacement was? Could potentially be a roving Triple-A umpire - Colorado Springs has a Triple-A team nearby so maybe someone was available in the area.

2B umpire O'Nora leaves with back problem - USATODAY.com

This article says Cory Blaser took over in the fourth.

[briancurtin]

He's listed on the MLB umpire roster, and he lives in the area according to this.

[yawetag]

Maybe Blaser was already slated to join the crew for a few days due to vacation or some other reason.

[Larry1953]

Originally Posted by yawetag

Maybe Blaser was already slated to join the crew for a few days due to vacation or some other reason.

That's probably it. It kinda sounds like the MLB version of the Little League scenario where a dad comes down from the stands. I imagine the guy was watching the game from his home nearby and lept into action.

How comfortable are MLB umpires with 3-man mechanics. I mean is it something that is so ingrained from minor league experience that it just comes back naturally or do they get rusty?

It sounds like O'Nora has a lumbar disk problem. He might be down a while, especially considering the demands of HP

[Larry1953]

Listening in on Bob Uecker doing the Brewers @ Rockies. Cory Blaser as PU apparently kicked a call at home calling a Brewer safe. Lots of ejections and very loud crowd booing - remember, he lives just outside of town there. Like is said of substitute players, the ball always has a way of finding you.

[johnnyg08]

Originally Posted by Larry1953

Cory Blaser as PU apparently kicked a call at home calling a Brewer safe. Lots of ejections and very loud crowd booing - remember, he lives just outside of town there. Like is said of substitute players, the ball always has a way of finding you.

Blaser looks really, really young. It doesn't have anything to do w/ the fact that he got it right or wrong, but it's cool to see a young guy in the show. I wouldn't say kicked it...replay shows that he got it wrong, but to say he kicked it...probably not.

[Larry1953]

I guess Blaser felt he needed to announce he presence with authority but he was too quick with the ejection. It looked a lot like the play in Bull Durham and Crash didn't get tossed until he said the magic word. The players did not speak too favorably of his strike zone either. I dunno, when the throw beats the runner and the tag is not obviously missed, you can do worse than calling the out. The MLB game seemed just a little too fast for Blaser on that play.