The MLB really needs some additional form of play review besides reviewing homeruns. I’m watching the Astros today. It was the bottom of the 5th, based loaded, with 1 out. Geoff Blum takes the plate for the Astros. Blum hits an in field grounder which is fielded by the Brandon Phillips, the second baseman. Phillips proceeds to pretend like he is tagging Hunter Pence as he is running towards second base, and then throws the ball to first for the double play ending the inning, negating a runner for the Astros which would have scored.
This would have extended the Astros lead 2-0. Key word earlier was pretend. Brandon Phillips was at least a foot away from Hunter Pence when he was reaching for the tag, yet the Umpire, Joe West #22, felt compelled to call Hunter Pence out. Now why would Joe West call the play so horribly? Is it because he didn’t have a good look at what was going on even though he was about 7 feet away? Or is it that he is just a complete idiot that isn’t watching the game he is suppose to be calling?
Video Added 4-20-2009 (UPDATE) Pay Attention Around the 1:10 mark in the video
One of the things I can’t stand about MLB umpires is they will definitively call a play completely wrong, and there is no recourse to right the wrong. Shame on you Joe West. Shame on you for pretending like you knew how to call that play. Shame on you for unfairly hurting the Astros chance to win todays game. I’m going to conclude here. Top of the 7th currently. The Reds now have a 3-1 lead over the Astros. This is your fault Joe West!
-Reginald Blackstone
Photo[mlb]
21 Comments
Sorry, the comment form is closed at this time.
If there’s ever a nuclear holocaust I’m hiding under Joe West’s turkey neck. That’s one hell of a shelter.
Gobble, Gobble, Gobble
That was one of the worst “un-reversed” calls I’ve seen in years and it probably cost us the game.
The league needs to impose economic sanctions on umps that bork calls, or provide video review.
This just makes the slowest and most boring sport in America (because soccer is as American as communism) more slow and boring. The Astros were going to lose anyway…. just put them out of their misery. No need to drag it out with more review….
Wait, this is a pro-Houston site…. GO ASTROS
Look at the video replay (especially from the first-base side). The ump didn’t ring up Pence until he ran on the infield grass in his attempt to avoid the tag. Rule 7.08(a)(1) says that a runner cannot stray more than three feet from HIS RUNNING BASELINE (the imaginary line from the runner to the base that he is attempting to reach safely), which is established at the moment that the defense attempts to make a tag on him. It also looks like the infield grass marks three feet from the BASEPATH (the line between the two bases). in this case, it would appear that in the ump’s judgment Pence ran out of the baseline.
I’ll try and look at the replay tonight but he didn’t look outside of the baseline to me.
You know it’s a bad call when instead of running to the dugout (after the third out), the first baseman is standing there pounding his mitt…..he knew Pence was safe.
Hmmmm…. 3 feet you say. It doesn’t look like 3 feet to me from the video. I added it for your viewing pleasure riocook.
Here’s the link to the replay:
http://mlb.mlb.com/media/video.jsp?content_id=4223433
Pence stepped on the grass, and West rang him up. I don’t agree that it’s a bad call just because the first baseman thought the tag was missed. He’s focusing on the play and catching the ball, not whether the runner ran out of the baseline. I’ll grant you that it was a close call, but not necessarily a bad call.
A close call it is. I’m glad to see someone out there pays attention to the dribble I write.
Agreed. Now don’t you owe Mr. West an apology?
p.s. You meant “drivel.”
I meant dribble, I drool a lot. Mrs. West deserves no apology. I’m siding with Big Hitter, cause he knows stuff. Pence was safe and Joe West blows sausage.
No way was he outside of the baseline.
He was already running close to the grass and he gets 3 feet left of whatever line he’s on.
You wanna see outside the baseline? Look up Wally Backman’s run around first base in the 86 Astros/Mets NLCS. That non-call screwed us out of the series (not that I’m still bitter).
Not true. Brandon Phillips has the ball and starts to make a play on Pence at :30 into the replay. At that time, Pence is still to the right of the basepath, and his baseline is established. By running to the left and stepping on the grass (00:34), he has gone more than three feet to the left of his baseline.
He was past the defender at 00:32
SAFE!!!!!
And he stepped on the grass at 00:33.
You just got owned by Big Hitter. I told you he knows his stuff.
Also note that West’s head never moved left – he called Pence out on the tag, not for running outside the baseline.
He just used that as an excuse once he realized he borked the call.
PHALE!!!
You are entitled to your own beliefs. I still say it was a close call, and not necessarily a bad one. There is no question that Pence stepped on the grass to avoid the tag, and that is when he got rung up. Enjoy your day.
Hey guys, how’s it going? Everyone having a good day?
/ducks
I have only one thing to add to this manic conversation:
It’s impossible to gauge when/why Joe West called out Pence. You can’t base it when he makes the cliched fist-pump. Look at the First Base ump; he waits until Blum is well past the bag to make his call. Umps are lazy… you can tell that by the umbrella of fat lacing Joe West’s chin, (see what I did there? I re-emphasized my initial, quite childish joke.).
Internet Fight!