As a baseball purist, I initially had some issues with the changes that have come to Major League Baseball over the last decade or so. But I gradually got used to the pitch clock, which I hardly notice anymore, the three-batter rule for relief pitchers, and—to a degree—the ghost runner (also called the Manfred Man) in extra innings. I’m actually on the fence with the last one, though every time I grumble that it’s not real baseball, I hearken back to a game in April of 2008 between my Padres and the Rockies, which went 22 innings. I watched every single one of those innings, which encompassed six hours and sixteen minutes, and got to bed at 1:30 a.m. (Jacqueline thought I was out of my mind.) With the ghost runner, games seldom go past 11 or 12 innings.
THE ROBOT UMPIRE
The latest change, the ABS Challenge System (Automated Balls & Strikes), has been in effect for the first two weeks of the new season. Known as the robot umpire, it has overturned its share of ball and strike calls, and supported many others. It even decided a game in the bottom of the ninth inning, giving the win to the Orioles over the Rangers. Personally, I like the system. Technology being what it is, why not get the call right? Many agree—though the system does have its critics.
The pitch that came after the missed call.
One such critic of the ABS Challenge System is Rich Garcia, a former MLB umpire who worked from 1975 to 1999. He calls the system embarrassing, that human umpires will be humiliated in front of tens of thousands of fans if their call is overturned. Does he have a point? Perhaps. Yet there is a cruel irony to this particular retired umpire making that statement.
In 1998 Rich Garcia was the home plate umpire for the first World Series game between my Padres and the Yankees. The game was tied, the Yankees had the bases loaded, and Mark Langston was pitching to Tino Martinez. On a 2-2 count, the pitch wound up practically down the middle of the strike zone—and was called a ball by Garcia. The Padres went ballistic.
The subsequent pitch went over the wall for a grand slam home run. The Padres never recovered and were swept in the Series.
Would the ABS Challenge System have made a difference back then, especially to us Padres fans? Well, what do you think?