Umps Got Instant Replay Wrong? BLATANTLY WRONG!!!

Last night at the A's-Indians game in Cleveland, it was a one run affair during the top of the 9th with two outs when Adam Rosales stepped up to the plate. Rosales managed to hit a home run to left field. The umpires, however, didn't think it went over the yellow line and called it a double. They would review the hit by Rosales and anybody at home, in the press box, the dugout, and even throughout the stadium could see and tell that the ball hit the railing above the yellow line therefore making it a home run.

The umps, however, came out of the reviewing room and ruled that it was a double. Bob Melvin went off on the umps and was tossed from the game. The A's would end up losing by the one run they didn't get 4-3.

Somehow the umps got a simple instant replay call wrong. The only thing reviewable in baseball at the moment they screwed up. Mr. Magoo could've gotten that one right.

How they got it wrong is a mystery. There are only two conceivable reasons to me on how they got this one wrong. One, they didn't have access to all the replay footage and couldn't make the right call. That, however, seems hard to believe and just looking at the home run, it just seems so obvious that it hit off the railing.

The other possibility is that their arrogance and/or stubbornness got the better of them. Umps do not like being wrong in any situation and perhaps that stubbornness in the face of indisputable video evidence influenced the wrong decision.

The right thing to do is have the commissioner reverse the decision therefore tying the game at 4-4 and replaying the rest of the inning and game. They could easily do it today before game 4 of this series starts.

Chances that they will actually do the right thing? About the same of that home run being called a double after review.

P.S. Even if it's not stubbornness and/or arrogance, it's still a problem with the umpires around the Majors.

Indians Hire Tito as Their Manager

It has been a year since Terry Francona was fired from the Red Sox for a disappointing end to the 2011 season. It's a pity that the team made that knee jerk reaction.

Tito did a year of broadcast work for ESPN waiting for the next season to come to an end when teams start to look for managers. That chance did come for Terry and with a team he was with before for a brief period of time in 1988 as a player. Terry Francona is putting the microphone in storage and getting the old Indians hat out. Terry has been hired by the Cleveland Indians as their new manager.

The terms of the agreement are not worked out yet but the official announcement is set to be made Monday. Tito takes over a team that was within reach of first place of their division until August showed up. The Indians went 5-24 in that month. The Indians have actually not been to the postseason since the Red Sox knocked them out in the ALCS in 2007 and went on to win the World Series with Tito as their manager.

We all knew that Terry was going to be picked up by some team and it was just up to Tito to determine the time and place for coming back. The Indians have been struggling to find their way back to the postseason and have just not been able to develop a ball club that can stand up for a few seasons like they had in the late 1990's. The team is still a work in progress considering how bad they collapsed in the 2nd half of the season. I don't expect the team to make huge waves for a couple years or so but with Terry Francona as manager they can perhaps straighten out the dugout and bring stability to the team.

P.S. Good Luck to you Terry.