Posted on 10/11/2015 7:22:13 PM PDT by DoughtyOne
NEW YORK -- Major League Baseball has suspended Los Angeles Dodgers infielder Chase Utley for Games 3 and 4 of the National League Division Series for what the league deemed was an illegal slide into New York Mets shortstop Ruben Tejada.
(Excerpt) Read more at espn.go.com ...
The phantom tag of second base during a double play is not a challengeable call. The play would not be reviewable if the Mets had turned a double play and should not have been reviewed here.
By the way, after what happened to Jung-ho Kang back in September 17, 2015, MLB has announced that the Arizona Fall League will test a new rule that base runners MUST slide directly into second or third base. If that change works, expect the MLB to adopt the same rule starting with the 2016 season.
Disagree. Breaking up the double play is an art - you must make the appearance of intending to slide toward second.
Utley showed no such intent. The intent was obviously solely to interfere with Tejada’s throwing to first. No runner can do that, anywhere.
The field umps blew it by not calling him, and the batter, out due to interference, immediately after the review showed he wasn’t out by the force play. End of inning.
The Mets couldn’t call for a replay review for the interference call, but the field umps could plainly see interference, in real time or even in video during the force play review. Blown call.
This suspension confirms this blown call.
Not enough. And he’s getting an expeditied appeal. Scumbag.
I don’t even know baseball and I can clearly see that it was basically an accident. Agree with your assessment.
This was my take on it last night.
I will say that I did see one video where it was crystal clear that his foot did not touch the base. It showed the video of the entire sweep of the foot, and a gap remain very evident throughout.
I did not see the deflection video you did. I don’t know how to explain that.
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/chat/3347543/posts?page=30#30
Tejada then winding up awkwardly after the attempted force out, was setting up to toss to first when taken down.
Utley was playing hard and Tejada was playing hard. They were both intent on making the play from their vantage point.
I believe Tejada should have realized he was about to be hit and should have avoided planting his foot. He should have employed "the hop" to prevent injury.
Bowa is right to an extent, but neither guy deserves blame here. It was a strange play and accidents happen.
Bowa made another interesting claim. He said he saw at least one break-up double play in each game he coached. I believe that was an exaggeration. There are low scoring games where you don't have many runners. Of course there are then games where you probably have several double play break up attempts.
There are 30 major league teams. There are 162 games in a season. That's 4,860 games in the major leagues alone.
If there is one double play break-up at least once every four games, there are over 1,200 double play break up attempts in each season. My guess is that there are at least on average one break up attempt every two games. Some games there will be more than one break up attempt. Most will have at least one. We may be talking more in the neighborhood of 2,000 break up attempts each season.
Okay, no need to guess how many double plays there are in a season. Here are the daily average stats for double plays on a game day. Tossed these numbers into a spread sheet and found out there are 27.04 double plays per game day. In a season that works out to exactly 4380 double plays per season.
There won't be a break up situation on every double play, but we know there are thousands. In a decade there are literally tens of thousands of these plays in the major leagues alone.
One resulted in a broken leg. This is not an issue that should cause a change to the rules governing slides. There should be not change in league rulings on these plays.
Hmmm, don’t remember exactly what you said, but I don’t remember reacting negatively to it.
At any rate, take care...
You touch on only a few nuances of the game there. Most people don’t think on your level when they watch one. You have to have your head in the game every moment. Most folks who played were just sitting there waiting for the ball to be hit to them. The top level player is thinking of a number of different scenarios that could play out depending on where the ball is hit, where they’ll need to go, who they’ll need to hit with a throw, who they’ll have to back up, what bag they may be required to cove. Something as simple as the number of outs can sometimes become fuzzy.
There’s a lot more going on in baseball than some folks realize.
That’s how I see it. Thanks for the mention.
It seems to be allowed, but it is not always a legal play.
The rules state that:
"If, in the judgment of the umpire, a base runner willfully and deliberately interferes with a batted ball or a fielder in the act of fielding a batted ball with the obvious intent to break up a double play, the ball is dead. The umpire shall call the runner out for interference and also call out the batter-runner because of the action of his teammate. In no event may bases be run or runs scored because of such action by a runner; Rule 7.09(f)"
The key element is the judgment of the umpire. In the Dodgers-Mets game, it was the judgment of the umpire that Utley did not deliberately interfere. But it appears that with a closer and longer look, Joe Torre believes it was deliberate.
This is not a problem. It should not result in a fix.
Here is Kang's statement after his injury.
It is unfortunate that what would be considered heads-up baseball would cause such a serious injury, the statement read. That said, Coghlan was playing the game the way it should be played. I'm confident he meant me no harm. I appreciate everyone's support.
Class statement, but he was exactly right. It's part of the game. Accidents happen.
Sports result in injuries. Tennis elbow, rotator cuffs, turned ankles, pulled muscles, broken arms/legs...
You'll never "legislate" these injuries away.
The game has been played this way for over 100 years. Now it's a problem?
Sorry, that's just Leftist "Pad me up mama, I'm going for a walk outside in that cold crewel world" kind of talk.
Somewhere Ty Cobb is smiling
Indeed...
No doubt...
= :^)
Kang should not have said it was a legal slide. Coming into American baseball from a foreign league, he is under even more pressure to allow that it was "clean." In Kang's case, it CLEARLY was not. Tajeda's is a tougher call, but I believe MLB made the right one in suspending Utley. Coghlan should also have been suspended. if this is two games, Coghlan should have been out for five; the unspoken "rule" that if you can reach the base with a trailing hand you haven't committed a foul is impossible to believe in Kang's case.
Early commentators -- even in the Pirate's organization like Steve Blass -- have walked their comments back: the correct replay angle shown from first base instead of the camera behind home plate, make it clear that Coghlan's slide was not legal. If MLB does not intend to sanction the Cubs, the Pirates should take it upon themselves next season.
Yup....I agree...the slide was fine, the baseman just failed to move his leg.
If MLB doesn't want to handle this, shortstops and second basemen can handle it themselves, and the consequences will not be good for the sliders. An infielder is under no obligation to try to avoid coming down hard on a sliding baserunner, nor is there any way you will ever be able to tell that a full force knee to the head or ribs as a shortstop comes down on a player was or was not deliberate.
Hard slides into the base are part of baseball. Rolling into an infielder isn't. Hook slides by runners who have no chance to to reach the bag once they've started their motion also ARE NOT. I don't want to see baseball played that way, but if the fans think this is "all part of the game," that may have to be what happens. It's a war that baserunners will lose.
You got that right.
One guy has momentum and the other the ability to jump.
Only one guy could have the advantage there.
This has been a part of the game for over a century.
Nothing new happened on Saturday. An accidental break does not change that.
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