Blown call costs Tigers pitcher perfect game

I wish they made a "shake your head" in disbelief icon for this statement.

 

That was awful!

As a Tigers fan from Michigan originally, it made me sick to my stomach....and as a former pitcher, I can't imagine how you'd deal with something like that without losing it. A perfect game is nearly impossible in HIGH SCHOOL....but to do it in the bigs?

That ump is a good one.....but that's a situation where you have to know what is happening and make sure that YOU as an ump aren't "in" the game. Horrible to take that away from Galarraga....he'll probably never see a moment like that again.

Give credit to the ump, though - you could tell from his statement that he felt worse than anyone!

 

Another Perfect game!

*ut an asterisk by it.
This shows how baseball fans really are: Fans, coaches, & players everywhere are really dissappointed for Galarraga. With all the problems going on in the world today, I have to admit when I went to bed last night I was really upset about this. Perfect games are hard to throw.

 

In my initial post I didn't mean for it to sound as if he intentionally called him out as to deny him a perfect game by "cheating". As most people around baseball I was sick seeing that call happen live. It was an EASY call to make....even if the runner had been safe by a third of a step, the runner should have been called out. Jim Joyce is no doubt a class guy and a great umpire. There is a reason he has been calling games in the bigs for 20+ years.

I just felt like Galaraga and MLB were cheated of a perfect game...not necessarily saying that Jim Joyce made that call on purpose. I have the highest respect for umpires especially MLB umpires. It was just such an easy call to make and I can promise you that you would not have heard a word from the opposing team had he been called out resulting in a perfect game.

Needless to say, it could not have been handled with more class on everyone's part. From Galaraga to Leyland and Jim Joyce it was at least good to see...hopefully that is something people and young guys coming up can take from the game and try to use from here on out.

 

From the angle you initially saw it looked easy. Harold Reynolds and Dave Valle both pointed out that the ball rolling back in his glove may have been a distraction. You're right though, in that situation...27th out of a perfect game on the line...if it's close...he's out. I understand what you were saying about getting cheated of a perfect game. I'm just saying that people have to be careful how they use that word because there is hypersensitivity to that word after what went on in the NBA and the refs there. I, as an umpire, will listen to what I need to listen to but when a player or coaches plays the "make up call" card than we have an issue. When you tell an umpire that's a make up call your saying he cheated and you questioned his integrity. Umpires at the pro level work their hind ends off to get there and despite some unique "personalities" they all work with integrity and a general unbias toward the outcome.

 

Climb of your high horse and face the facts. You have been on here for a few weeks and come off like your opinion regarding umpires is above all others. I said there was a 25% chance he would resign (that's also a 75% chance he won't). Look at Don Denkinger's life since his blown call in the World Series. He said it destroyed his life. Jim Joyce is an emotional wreck (I admire him taking the heat as he has done). He is wracked with agony that his family is getting mistreated and at his age he may just decide to bag it (25% chance IMO). In our 24/7 multimedia world his blown call will make him the all-time poster boy for worst umpire calls. It instantly changed everything. Denkinger's was just a horrible call in the middle of the World Series and that single moment was only a messed up moment. You have to carry forward to say it won the series for the Royals. Joyce blew it at the final moment and changed everything.

I feel for him and he is a stand up guy, for sure. I still say Selig will overturn it and Joyce may resign over it. There surely is building momentum for Selig to overturn it as everyone is a winner if he does and the ump will get some pressure relieved and justice will prevail and Bud gets to be the hero. And he needs some good mojo.

 

I hear what everyone is saying and my initial reaction is the same as most – if it’s that close the ump should err on calling it the pitchers way – give him his perfect game even though the runner is safe by a step.

But really? If the call had gone the other way, out at first and replay had shown definitively the runner was safe, people would be belly aching over the “perfect game” that really wasn’t. “Put an asterisk by it”, “it shouldn’t count”, “it cheapens the other 20 perfect games that were legit.” That’s what we would be hearing.

And I don’t care if it’s a 3-0 game. After all the “play to the last out” talk after last week’s Porter Ridge/TCR game it’s hard to argue whether the runner should be on base if he was really safe. This wouldn’t be the first no hitter broken up in the ninth that snow balled into a loss. Two more swings of the bat and it could be a tie game.

The ump tried to make the right call and blew it. He admitted it. (Not that he had much of a choice – the replay admitted it for him). It sucks for Galaragga that he won’t be in the record book but he knows he did it. The standings are right. And hell the game ball for the *perfect game* will look just as good in his trophy case (or will still fetch a pretty penny from some collector.)

 

No high horse here. You may not have caught the beginning of the Tiger game today but Jim Joyce had the plate. Galarraga brought the line up out and they shook hands. Galarraga's actions will go a long way to quell the storm. Joyce acknowledged and apologized and Galarraga excepted it. If Bud Selig overturns that call it will be the end of umpiring as we know it. It will never happen. The instant replay back and forth will go on again. If it does happen there will probably be another umpire strike.

I would be willing to bet that the average baseball fan has no idea who Don Denkinger is or what play you are talking about. There are some hardcore baseball fans who keep tabs on that stuff but I think most people couldn't even tell you who he is. It will be the same thing with Jim Joyce.

 

Hmmm, let me see if I can remember. The pitcher at the time of the play in question by Denkinger was a rookie named........ Todd Worrell. Yep, I remember him ..but have long forgiven.

 

It wouldn't surprise me at all if Selig overturned that call. Not really looking for that to happen, but, who knows.