MLB to Expand Instant Replay.....?

[APG]

Originally Posted by JRutledge

Baseball has to be careful. If they do not implement it right, they will cause other controversies. It is one thing to get certain plays right, but so much can happen in baseball if the call is changed. And some of the plays that have been controversial have other implications that I do not think the public even thinks about.

Peace

I agree that MLB will have to be careful and think thoroughly about how certain replay situations will be handled. But it's a foregone conclusion that replay WILL be expanded...all this waxing about how baseball is officiated by humans and that mistakes are "part of the game" and it's been that way forever won't change that fact.

[DG]

Critical "who knocked the ball out of bounds call" in Celtics-Heat game just reviewed with 41 seconds left in game. It took less than a minute to review. No big deal, Heat crowd barely made a sound when the initial call was reversed, Celtics get the ball. Probably saw it on arena monitors where replay was clear. Celtics win by 4. Big call, big correction aided by replay.

[tmagan]

Originally Posted by DG

Critical "who knocked the ball out of bounds call" in Celtics-Heat game just reviewed with 41 seconds left in game. It took less than a minute to review. No big deal, Heat crowd barely made a sound when the initial call was reversed, Celtics get the ball. Probably saw it on arena monitors where replay was clear. Celtics win by 4. Big call, big correction aided by replay.

There were five hands there. I couldn't tell conclusively who touched it last.

[DG]

Originally Posted by tmagan

There were five hands there. I couldn't tell conclusively who touched it last.

Gee whiz, holy mackeral. How you miss make this easy call reversal, as was made?

[APG]

Originally Posted by tmagan

There were five hands there. I couldn't tell conclusively who touched it last.

That ball was conclusively off the Heat player's hand.

[zm1283]

The game was fine 75, 50 and 25 years ago and it is still fine now. The umpiring and playing have gotten better over time.

Most of this is coming from the media, who have convinced the fans that something just has to be done. IR in football is a joke. Review everything or review nothing. I hate it in the NFL, I hate it in basketball ("Lets go to the monitor to see if the toe was on the three point line" ), and it will be even worse in baseball.

The umpires better tell them to shove it.

[MD Longhorn]

Originally Posted by tmagan

There were five hands there. I couldn't tell conclusively who touched it last.

Then by God you should not be a booth official in any sport. Everyone else could tell.

[tmagan]

Originally Posted by mbcrowder

Then by God you should not be a booth official in any sport. Everyone else could tell.

Instant replay should be used to overturn egregious calls, not 50/50 calls, otherwise we might as well use replay to overturn every call.

[David B]

Originally Posted by DG

Critical "who knocked the ball out of bounds call" in Celtics-Heat game just reviewed with 41 seconds left in game. It took less than a minute to review. No big deal, Heat crowd barely made a sound when the initial call was reversed, Celtics get the ball. Probably saw it on arena monitors where replay was clear. Celtics win by 4. Big call, big correction aided by replay.

nah, Celtics would have won anyway ...

[DG]

An OOB possession call with 41 seconds left, in a game won by the the team that benefitted from the reversal, on the other team's home court and the crowd barely made a sound when the reversal came, and the team that benefitted won by 4. How can anyone say that replay was a bad thing to have?

Celtics may have won anyway, but this reversal was huge, and clearly correct.

[Bob James]

Originally Posted by zm1283

The game was fine 75, 50 and 25 years ago and it is still fine now. The umpiring and playing have gotten better over time.

Most of this is coming from the media, who have convinced the fans that something just has to be done. IR in football is a joke. Review everything or review nothing. I hate it in the NFL, I hate it in basketball ("Lets go to the monitor to see if the toe was on the three point line" ), and it will be even worse in baseball.

I agree with you 100 percent. Good gracious, each year there's a blizzard of articles saying "the umpires stink; something must be done." But your closing hope, that the umpires will resist this, is a lost cause. The umpires, as I understand it, embraced the current program regarding border calls, and why not? It relieves them of responsibility, ultimately, for controversial calls. This is "get the call right" carried to absurdity. I truly wish MLB umpires would tell Bud and Co., for what it's worth, to stuff it. But I'm not optimistic.

[LilLeaguer]

Originally Posted by Bob James

I agree with you 100 percent. Good gracious, each year there's a blizzard of articles saying "the umpires stink; something must be done." But your closing hope, that the umpires will resist this, is a lost cause. The umpires, as I understand it, embraced the current program regarding border calls, and why not? It relieves them of responsibility, ultimately, for controversial calls. This is "get the call right" carried to absurdity. I truly wish MLB umpires would tell Bud and Co., for what it's worth, to stuff it. But I'm not optimistic.

According to Jason Stark, the umpires have resisted expanded replay so far. I doubt if they will be able to hold it off for long, though.

[grunewar]

More on the subject......

Instant replays could instantly fix baseball’s umpire problem - Nationals Journal - The Washington Post

“Life isn’t perfect,” Torre said. “I think this is a game of life.”