It's time to cry about the strike zone. Everyone should watch Real Sports Balls & Strikes

[Ruzious]

9 hours ago, O's are Legends said:

3-2 game, 2 outs in the top of the 9th, 3-0 pitch is clearly inside and should be called ball 4. Instead it's 3-1, next pitch Rickard pops up to end the game.

Umpire cost the O's a opportunity to tie or take the lead with Adam Jones due next to hit. (A double with 2 outs with Rickard on base most likely ties the game.)

The call on Rickard is one of so many examples why they have to go to technology to make the balls and strikes calls.  That was blatantly awful.  The O's would have still likely lost, but we'll never know, and that bugs the bleep out of me.  We're staying up after midnight on a work night watching till the end of the game and have to settle for garbage calls that wouldn't fly in the WWE.        

[joelala]

25 minutes ago, Ruzious said:

The call on Rickard is one of so many examples why they have to go to technology to make the balls and strikes calls.  That was blatantly awful.  The O's would have still likely lost, but we'll never know, and that bugs the bleep out of me.  We're staying up after midnight on a work night watching till the end of the game and have to settle for garbage calls that wouldn't fly in the WWE.        

As frustrating as the ump was last night, I will never be an advocate of technology calling balls and strikes.  Baseball is perfect the way it is, flaws and all.  So you have a bad ump one night?  Thats part of the game.  Its also part of the game for the pitchers and the batter to figure out the ump's tendencies and make adjustments accordingly.  Like, a fairly large part of the game.  Thats one of the many things that makes baseball great. 

I have to respectfully disagree with you on this one.  Also, the bad calls were going both ways.  The homeplate ump calling Pujols out on that check swing was a laughable call.  There's just no way he had the vantage point to see if the bat went past the plate (which it pretty clearly did not.)

[joelala]

7 hours ago, Cumberbundy said:

Need to go electronic, umpires are dreadful.

Again, it's part of the game, and I love it.  Call me a traditionalist haha.

[Ruzious]

11 minutes ago, joelala said:

Again, it's part of the game, and I love it.  Call me a traditionalist haha.

I think that's ridiculous.  The game is about the players; not the umpires.  And mistakes by umpires are NOT a good thing - by any way of thinking that makes sense.  

Until recently, there hasn't been a choice, because the technology wasn't fully developed.  That's the only reason having umps call balls and strikes is "traditional".  Technology wasn't an alternative.  It'd be like saying using outhouses is traditional, because back in the day we didn't have indoor plumbing.  People today generally don't say "I'm doin my business outside, because I'm a traditionalist."  

I want to see the correct team win and not have the urge to throw the remote control (ooh what a terrrible technological invention) at the tv at 1 AM.     

[joelala]

I do do (pun intended) my business outside.

[Cumberbundy]

13 minutes ago, Ruzious said:

I think that's ridiculous.  The game is about the players; not the umpires.  And mistakes by umpires are NOT a good thing - by any way of thinking that makes sense.  

Until recently, there hasn't been a choice, because the technology wasn't fully developed.  That's the only reason having umps call balls and strikes is "traditional".  Technology wasn't an alternative.  It'd be like saying using outhouses is traditional, because back in the day we didn't have indoor plumbing.  People today generally don't say "I'm doin my business outside, because I'm a traditionalist."  

I want to see the correct team win and not have the urge to throw the remote control (ooh what a terrrible technological invention) at the tv at 1 AM.     

Seconded! When they mess up & then throw a guy out its really tough to stomach. Where does an umpire get an ego from. ? Seeing an ump stare down a guy who's walking away, like he's hoping for a reason to throw him out, bothers me.  

[joelala]

Yea, that was absurd.  Does anyone know what kind of performance reviews the umpires have?  Game to game?  Series to series?  Season to season?

I totally get your frustration, and totally get the desire to go digital, but like I said, I personally like the human error aspect of the game. 

[Ruzious]

2 hours ago, joelala said:

I do do (pun intended) my business outside.

I laughed.  That's old school!

[El Gordo]

3 hours ago, joelala said:

As frustrating as the ump was last night, I will never be an advocate of technology calling balls and strikes.  Baseball is perfect the way it is, flaws and all.  So you have a bad ump one night?  Thats part of the game.  Its also part of the game for the pitchers and the batter to figure out the ump's tendencies and make adjustments accordingly.  Like, a fairly large part of the game.  Thats one of the many things that makes baseball great. 

I have to respectfully disagree with you on this one.  Also, the bad calls were going both ways.  The homeplate ump calling Pujols out on that check swing was a laughable call.  There's just no way he had the vantage point to see if the bat went past the plate (which it pretty clearly did not.)

It's not a bad ump one night It's a good ump every once in a while. Most nights it's pretty bad for both sides.

[Aristotelian]

He was calling that inside strike off the plate all night (did it to Schoop earlier in the game) but squeezed Hellickson twice in a row to Trout on the outside corner before he (fortunately) struck him out. Awful umpiring and I still vote yes to Robo-umps.