The Need to Get it Right - Gary Armida's Blog

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Gary Armida's Blog

The Need to Get it Right Stuck

Posted on June 28, 2012 at 08:58 AM.

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�Getting it right�. It seems to be a phrase bandied about more so than ever, especially around sports. At the moment, the phrase is being screamed in Baseball circles more and more due to the perceived high amount of umpire errors during this season. It is undeniable that there have been some egregious errors. Johan Santana threw a no-hitter that was really a 1-hitter. The Yankees� Dwayne Wise made a catch in the stands for the third out of an inning without actually catching the ball. Umpire Mike DiMuro never asked Wise to show him the ball as proof of the third out. It�s a good thing because a fan, who actually tried to put back in Wise�s glove, was holding it. A couple of years ago, Armando Galarraga lost a perfect game when Jim Joyce blew the out call at first base. There were many errors before and so many since. Yes, it makes the umpires involved look terrible, or even worse�inept. The need for full instant replay looks to be necessary as the wrong calls are seemingly growing every year. There are so many examples of bad calls this season. Full instant replay seems to have some overwhelming evidence to support its case.

A few seasons ago, Major League Baseball instituted instant replay for homeruns due to the inordinate amount of missed calls. These were high leverage situations that did impact the outcomes of games. It was needed; it was a good first step. Since then, there are pleas for the technology to be used in other situations: fair/foul calls, close out/safe calls, and just about any situation that can come up. In society�s typical reactionary way, a small number of errors are enough to call a system failed and to turn to technology. Maybe, just maybe, a little perspective and a more practical solution should be tried before turning a sport into a game without heart, without discussion, and without the �edges�.

(Ok, some full disclosure time: The very first article I ever published online was about the need for instant replay and how tradition shouldn�t get in the way of getting the call right. I even re-printed it in August of 2008 with some updated comments of the same. What is to follow is an argument against my younger self. Call it waffling, call it changing my mind. I prefer to call it gaining some perspective with age over the past few seasons. I once thought that certain things would ruin baseball forever: bad calls costing teams, steroids, etc. I�ve even written some pretty terrible columns on steroids that I wish I could take back. I�ve realized that there really isn�t much that can take down the sport. It�s already been through gambling, cheating, steroids, other drugs, labor issues, scandals galore. These are not just recent problems; in fact, some date back to the early 1900�s. So, now on with perspective and the revised �correct� opinion.)

One of Baseball�s greatest assets is the conversation it inspires. It is a game of imperfection. Hitters fail quite often; Managers make poor decisions at times; relievers give up big homeruns late in games, and umpires make bad calls at times. All of those elements add up to conversation. Do these things happen all the time? Absolutely not . 95 percent of all calls made by umpires will go un-noticed. It�s those few they get wrong where judgment is passed. It just simply isn�t worth all of the time wasted to use full instant replay in Baseball. Yes, some calls are terribly bad and may alter the outcome of a game. It isn�t right and sometimes it is downright unfair. The 1985 World Series can be the argument for that. The 1985 Cardinals had a 3-2 series lead and headed to the ninth inning of game six with a one-run lead. Their closer, Todd Worrell, came on to finish off the Kansas City Royals. The Royals� Jorge Orta led off with a slow roller to first baseman Jack Clark. Clark fielded and flipped to Worrell who beat Orta to the bag. For some reason, umpire Don Denkinger saw the play different and ruled that Orta was safe. With some Cardinals� errors, the Royals won game six and went on to beat the Cardinals in game seven. Many Cardinals fans will still say that Denkinger cost them the title. They may be correct. The play certainly led to some unfortunate events. But, did it cost them the series? Who knows? It certainly seems like a convenient excuse for losing a game seven. It was definitely a bad call, but Baseball survived 1985.

One could go all the way back to Fred Merkle in 1908. Merkle committed what was described as a �bonehead� play when he supposedly didn�t run to second base on a game winning single by Al Bridwell. He evidently veered off and ran to the clubhouse, which was located in the outfield. It was customary for players to do that. When the Cubs appealed--with fans pouring out on the field-- the umpires deliberated and then ruled Merkle didn�t touch second, even though they didn�t actually see it happen. That game seemed to cost the Giants the pennant. Baseball most definitely survived past 1908.

The game has thrived despite errors from the men in blue. 2012 is not the first season where umpiring has been poor. There have always been errors made, controversial calls that would have impact on the game. Does it seem like much more this season? It sure does feel like it. It likely feels that way because we see it all, with replays on loop for 24 hours. Twitter explodes with the want for instant replay. But, full instant replay simply is not the answer to remediate this problem.

Full instant replay poses a few problems. We can ignore the argument about the ebb and flow of a baseball game and how it is not meant to be played with the stops and pauses like football. We can ignore the time factor as homerun calls aren�t all that long. But, we can�t ignore how a baseball game is played. What exactly happens when a foul ball call gets ruled fair? Do the rules change and the umpires now approximate where runners would have ended up? That certainly doesn�t seem right; instant replay should take the guesswork out of umpiring not add to it. Catch and trap calls also pose the same problem. If the ruling is a catch, but replay shows a trap, where do the runners go? There is no perfect solution. Yes, the call may be correct, but there is still an argument about the base runners. Replay can�t solve that.

There are a couple of solutions. One would involve an overhaul of umpiring training. Umpires should be subject to physical fitness tests and re-training on communication and fundamentals. Their credentials should be reviewed every couple of seasons. Before each season, there should be a refresher course where umpires walk through situations such as the watching the runner and the ball on tag-ups. Additionally, umpire selection should be revised for the playoffs. The selection should be based on season performance and evaluation. The proverbial �best of the best� should be working these important games. Theoretically, the best umpires should mean fewer mistakes. It also wouldn�t hurt umpires to have a refresher course before the playoffs, as most are not accustomed to working the outfield lines. Working on communication and reminding umpires of their responsibilities on each play is essential to better umpiring. It may seem simplistic, but it is something that could (and would) help. Evaluating umpires more strictly makes for better, more consistent performance. QuesTech proved that as umpires seemingly lost their wide strike zone if they were calling game in a QuesTech stadium.

�Getting it right� is undoubtedly important. It is the duty of the umpire to do just that. Major League Baseball has a responsibility to the game, the players, and the fans to ensure that the results are valid with correct calls. Instant replay won�t ensure that one bit. The sport has lived through poor calls before and it will continue to do so. In fact, some of those poor calls lead to some great conversations. Yes, this is a humanistic argument, something that is becoming less and less accepted in Baseball circles. However, one has to wonder just how many bad calls impact the result of the game. Could it be more than five percent? With just a little more attention paid to umpire selection and training, the small percentage of poor calls should lessen.