Cruz: one of the dumbest plays I've seen

[Orioles2012]

Did he come set? Very good point.

Im watching the replay now, his legs are stationary but he is slowing bringing his glove down to the belt. As he is bringing his arms to the belt, he notices cruz running and throws home, his arms didnt stop.

[brooks1083]

He didn't have to step off as he would have been "delivering a pitch" BUT you still have to come to a set position which it didn't look like he did.

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[eddie83]

I thought it was a balk as he never stepped off or set.

Doesn't have to step off it was an essence ball 4. He rushed home to say the least.

[brooks1083]

2nd person to bring this up. I'd have to see it again but you could be right. I also think that the catcher could have been called for a balk but the ump just isn't going to call it there, I guess. The batter is in the box. The catcher is basically right on home plate to accept the pitch and the batter has no path to swing at the ball.

Crush should have let it fly on his ribs and get catchers interference.

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[25 Nuggets]

Looking at that play again, wasn't that a balk?

The pitcher didnt step off the rubber and he never came set, and since there are runners on, that should've been a balk right? His arms never stopped moving so it was a quick pitch. unless the rule changes if the runner is stealing home.

The guys on MLB.com (Billy Ripken, Eric Byrnes) were saying that it could have been a balk and that a balk could have been a likely outcome for a play like that.

[Tbone83]

I do have to say that I don't recall ever seeing that dramatic of a shift with a runner on 3rd with the game on the line. Perhaps Nelson was just too tempted. I don't know if CD has the skills to bunt to the 3rd base side, but when they panned out to the wide shot when he first came up, I was astounded by the hole over there.

[bpilktree]

He didn't have to step off as he would have been "delivering a pitch" BUT you still have to come to a set position which it didn't look like he did.

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If he is delivering the pitch then the catcher balked as he has to give the hitter the chance to swing. He can only come out if it is a step off and throw home.

[Nite]

2nd person to bring this up. I'd have to see it again but you could be right. I also think that the catcher could have been called for a balk but the ump just isn't going to call it there, I guess. The batter is in the box. The catcher is basically right on home plate to accept the pitch and the batter has no path to swing at the ball.

Which is why I get upset with MLB and its umpires who don't know these little rules, or at least never enforce them. The ones who do then get nicknames and basically hated.

[brooks1083]

If he is delivering the pitch then the catcher balked as he has to give the hitter the chance to swing. He can only come out if it is a step off and throw home.

Which is why I said Crush should have laid the barrel of the bat in his ribs. I think that would have gotten the point across.

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[Lester Freamon]

Davis could have easily won this game by pushing a bunt past the pitcher long before Cruz even thought of stealing home. Perhaps that's why Cruz looked so pissed off. Davis had 3 pitches before the steal, bunt it past the GD pitcher, nobody was around. Shame on him.

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Totally with you on that. Easier said than done? I guess, I dunno...

[eddie83]

If he is delivering the pitch then the catcher balked as he has to give the hitter the chance to swing. He can only come out if it is a step off and throw home.

He can come out I think but has to wait until the ball is pitched. They missed two balls on the same play.

[MrOrange82]

The guys on MLB.com (Billy Ripken, Eric Byrnes) were saying that it could have been a balk and that a balk could have been a likely outcome for a play like that.

Good rule of thumb: don't put the outcome of a game in the hands of the umpires if you can avoid it...like, by not trying to steal home if you're not actually that fast.

[AdamK]

I do have to say that I don't recall ever seeing that dramatic of a shift with a runner on 3rd with the game on the line. Perhaps Nelson was just too tempted. I don't know if CD has the skills to bunt to the 3rd base side, but when they panned out to the wide shot when he first came up, I was astounded by the hole over there.

There is no way Davis hits it down the third base line any other way than accidentally in that at bat. He was pulling way open with his right leg on a previous hack or two prior to the Cruz play.

Argh this team. Such frustrate.

[Morgan423]

1) What's your point? If you are saying that we had good hitters coming up behind Manny, then you can argue the bunt there.

2) It took a perfect throw to get Markakis. If we hold him and Davis strikes out, everyone complains that we didn't send him.

3) Why would he be running on a 3-2 count? I'm not sure you know the game.

1) Not giving up an out ensures that all three of those guys get an opportunity to hit an try to drive the runner home. It's a situation where I wouldn't give up the out based on who the next hitters in the lineup are.

2) With a sharp single to shallow right field, I'll put my money on CD getting a hit, a sac fly, or a ground ball that can't have a DP turned on it. I'm pretty sure CD will deliver one of those results WAY more often than Nick scores in that situation.

3) No need for ad hominem attacks. I wouldn't accuse you of not knowing the game, even though we may have differences of opinion about strategy. Here I wasn't remembering the base situation correctly; they weren't loaded... so no he wouldn't be running by default. I still don't know why he took off.

[Guest]

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" lang="en"><p>Nelson Cruz on trying to steal home: "It was there. It was in front of everybody. I thought I had a chance.” <a href="https://twitter.com/search?q=%23Orioles&src=hash">#Orioles</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/search?q=%23OriolesTalk&src=hash">#OriolesTalk</a></p>— Rich Dubroff (@RichDubroffCSN) <a href="

">June 7, 2014</a></blockquote>

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