MLB Umpiring: Beyond Atrocious

MLB umpiring is at a point where I literally just can’t take watching games anymore. It’s so bad, so inconsistent, and so illogical that it’s incredible to me that more people are not upset about it. In Monday night’s Yankees-Twins game alone, nine pitches were called strikes that were at least 1 foot outside of the strike zone. There is something fundamentally wrong with how we are calling balls and strikes if a strike is called over a full foot outside of the strike zone one time, and this case we’re talking nine times. While this was just one game, I’m sure if you watch the MLB with any kind of consistency you’d know that this is “just part of the game.”

That’s the problem though. This should never just be part of the game. Not today, not in 2012. I’m sick of this argument that the umpiring being bad is just something we should live with and is part of the “human element” of the game. It’s a stupid argument that just doesn’t make sense. The human element is the players competing against each other and not the freaking guy enforcing the rules. This goes for all sports too because god knows we need officiating in basketball, football, and baseball to undergo some major facelifts as well.

Baseball is easily the worst in terms of officiating because its umpires affect the outcome of the games more than any other officials in any other sport. The way things are now wouldn't one guy sitting in front of an HD TV and making the calls based on an HD replay do a better job? Why should we have to tolerate changing strike zones every night when we could just install a system to track whether the ball went over the plate at the right height? Why with the technology we have today should there EVER be a blown call on the base paths or regarding a home run? I don’t understand, what exactly is the argument is against getting the calls right as much as possible? I’m not suggesting we literally have one guy umpire the game from a television but it’s just unacceptable that the MLB doesn’t help its umpires get more calls correct.

Just look at how much impact the strike zone has on a baseball game. When you’re a pitcher you’re trying to keep the ball as close to the edges of the plate as possible so that the hitter has the worst possible chance of making solid contact with the ball. When the edges magically change every night so does the game. The entire premise of the game is based on the matchup between the pitcher and the batter, so when strike zone changes from night to night it has an enormous impact on the competitive balance of the game overall. We’re currently allowing the area you can throw a strike in to be essentially determined by subjective human judgment. It would be like allowing the officials to decide how wide to make the basket every night for a basketball game.

For umpiring the game outside of the strike zone the MLB’s lack of ambition regarding adding a replay official is abysmal. There is no reason in any sport that we should have to stop the game for 15 minutes to have a guy remove himself from the field of play to go look at a TV. This is an industry worth billions of dollars and we can’t just pay a professional umpire to sit in front of a TV? Think about it, it would instantly solve just about every problem umpires have on the field. If an umpire isn’t totally sure on a call or doesn’t have a good angle he can simply buzz up to this official who would be right 99% of the time. If a manager comes out to argue a call made on the field, buzz up to the official. What would it take, 10 seconds? If the manager continues to argue after the replay official was buzzed, eject him from the game.

I understand that baseball fans are hesitant to accept replay because they already think the game is too long, but I see no reason why these replays can’t be almost instantaneous with a replay official. It would also cut down on the time managers spend arguing calls because who, besides Ozzie Guillen, would argue with the guy sitting in front of the HD TV?

These are just ideas off the cuff but they make a hell of a lot more sense than the current system that seems to get a lot of calls wrong. Who in the world is evaluating these MLB umpires and thinks that they’re doing even an adequate job? The MLB’s failure to initiate anything beyond taking forever to review home runs is just unacceptable and is making baseball tough to watch. I want to watch the players decide the outcome of the game, not the umpires, I don’t see why this isn’t always our priority when it comes to regulating sports. 

5 rules in sports that make 0 sense

1. Pass interference in the NFL – How is pass interference still a spot of foul penalty and not a 15 yard penalty like it is in college football? Does the NFL think if it was a 15 yard penalty there’d just be people tackled on every single long pass? I just can’t see how it’s logical to have 60 yard penalties based on the discretion of the referee. Making it a 15 yard penalty would greatly take away the referee’s impact on NFL games and I don’t see any reason for it not to be done immediately.

2. The lack of dedicated replay officials – Currently in the NFL, MLB, and NBA when something needs to be reviewed the officials stop the game for up to 10-15 minutes to go look at it. Why can’t there just be a replay official who sits in front of a crystal clear HD television and makes these calls? This is what college football does and while it doesn’t eliminate controversial rulings, at least we won’t waste 15 minutes watching Ed Hochuli under a tarp looking at a tiny television. The NFL system seems to be the most egregious offender of this because a lengthy review can completely destroy the momentum a team has gained. The NFL is actually proposing to change this system this offseason and I hope they do.

3. Pass or fumble in the NFL – I don’t know if there are more illogical rules in sports than what the NFL uses to determine whether a quarterback fumbled or passed the ball. Currently, if a quarterback begins to throw the football, loses his grip of it in the process, and still manages to throw it 15 yards down the field, it’s a fumble. However, if a quarterback tries to stop his throw and begins to tuck it into his body, it’s a pass. Does this make sense to anyone? If a quarterback’s arm gets hit and he still manages to use his finger tip to pass it down the field, how is it not considered a pass?

4. Charging in basketball – Charges in basketball are called way too frequently. It turns an athletic sport into a bunch of people falling down trying to get foul calls. It allows Glen Davis to be considered a decent defender. (If your best asset as a player is your ability to fall down, you should not be in the NBA) If it were up to me charges would only be called if the offensive player is totally out of control, uses unreasonable physical force or is in the restricted area. I don’t see how doing this wouldn’t improve basketball dramatically and immediately.

5. Traveling in the NBA- Does anyone know what a travel is these days? This is a rule that just seems to be arbitrarily called. Can you do jump stops where both your feet don’t hit the ground at the same time? Can you take as many steps as you want on a fast break? Are dribble rules disregarded entirely if your name is Lebron James or Derrick Rose? Rules should never be disregarded in some cases and that’s exactly what traveling seems to be in the NBA. 

My Super Bowl Halftime Review

It sucked

Notes on Giants-Cowboys

I’m real excited about the Giants beating the Cowboys last night so why not start up the blog again. Here are some notes on the game last night.

Eli Manning- How many high difficulty throws did this guy make with the game on the line? He’s going to make 1-2 stupid throws a game but nobody has been better with the game on the line this year. Whether you like or dislike Eli you can’t deny he’s playing at an MVP level this year.

Defense- These teams are pretty much exactly the same on the defensive side of the ball. If they can’t put pressure on the quarterback they just get torched. Outside of Jason Pierre Paul I don’t think another defender for either team had even an average game. It was that bad.

JPP- Speaking of Jason Pierre Paul, I don’t think I’ve ever seen a defensive end be an ENTIRE defense like that. He had 8 tackles, a forced fumble, 2 sacks, a safety, and a blocked field goal. Ladies and gentleman, here’s your NFC Defensive Player of the Week. The scary part about JPP is that he’s just learning how to play football.

Justin Tuck- On the other side of JPP and having just about the exact opposite game was Justin Tuck. It might be a bit rash but the Giants have to consider playing Tuck less. He looks out of shape and he isn’t contributing against the pass or the run right now. He used to be a guy known for his motor but Tuck seems to shut it down on half the plays he’s in on now. Not sure if he’s hurt, out of shape, or done but clearly Justin Tuck isn’t right.

Rob Ryan- Can we stop showing this guy before/after every play? What has he done to deserve this kind of coverage? I’m not sure whether the constant coverage is just because he looks like a werewolf or if there’s something I’m missing here. Also, how did he not know the Giants were going to run a draw for the 2 point conversion? They ran the same play last week in the same exact situation. Who on the planet DIDN’T know the Giants were running a draw there?

DJ Ware- Why do the Giants insist on running draws and screens for this guy? Why is he even on the team? What does he do well? I don’t get it. 

Collinsworth Praising Terrence Newman- For some inexplicable reason Collinsworth in the early 4th quarter praised the way Terrence Newman had been playing. I guess if getting burned over and over again is worth praise then Newman deserved it.

Plaxico Burress and the "evil" New York Giants

We have football in just a few days and the top story on ESPN New York is about Plaxico Burress ripping his former team and its’ fans. His reasons for this are because the Giants didn’t treat him properly after he shot himself in the leg and removed himself from the Giants roster. The worst part of this entire situation is that Eli Manning and the rest of the Giants are actually taking criticism from the media and idiots like Stephen A. Smith about how they handled this situation.

Let me start this off by saying the Giants do not owe Burress anything. They paid him millions of dollars and in the midst of a playoff run, he shot himself in the leg. This created an enormous distraction for his team and he wound up in jail. Now he’s complaining Eli Manning didn’t visit him in prison and that Tom Coughlin was mean to him after it happened. I mean this is stuff we should be rolling our collective eyes at but instead it’s “top news.”

Are you freaking kidding me Plax? I know you’re trying to say you were Eli’s biggest supporter now but I clearly remember when you were publicly bashing his play the years leading up to the Super Bowl run. I’m sorry Eli hurt your feelings not visiting you but I know there wasn’t much love between you guys to begin with and you sabotaged his season. What the hell do you expect? The idea that Eli Manning should’ve done anything besides go about his business and be a professional is absolutely ridiculous.

Seriously, I know we love this story of redemption and we want to show that Burress was somehow kicked down by everyone instead of actually shitting all over himself, but we’re taking it a little far when we start criticizing professionals like Eli Manning and Tom Coughlin. I mean Burress didn’t like that Coughlin didn’t treat him with respect after he put himself before the team and shot himself? It’s Tom Fucking Coughlin! Did you expect him to be understanding about this situation?

Where in the blue hell was this media when Burress originally shot himself and got a RIDICULOUS prison sentence he didn’t deserve? Where was and where is the criticism of Bloomberg for making all this happen? No one defended Burress then, but now we want to spin this huge revival comeback story so we need the arch villains to be the New York Giants. This is so ridiculous because the Giants are such a professional organization that it works to their own detriment at times. They sat by and let Tiki Barber, Jeremy Shockey, and now Plaxico Burress just rip up their guys and they don’t respond because they always take the high road.

If you really think that Burress was mistreated by the Giants then you’re an idiot. This franchise did nothing but put up with him sitting out practices and games while he publicly bashed his own teammates and coach. Yeah, he was a force on the field and was awesome in the NFC Championship game vs. the Packers, but this is no reason for the Giants to treat a guy with respect who clearly didn’t treat them with any respect during his tenure. So while Plax bitches about us Giants fans not having his back during this maybe he should think about the constant disrespect and bullshit he always showed us as a player for our team.

I know post Michael Vick comeback the media dying for another prison to superstar revival story and wants to make the Giants the antagonists in this one but the fact is they are not. I don’t care how we celebrate Burress’ come back but let’s not act like the Giants are the bad guys here. With that said, let’s just talk about football.

Why Steve Smith?

Steve Smith of the New York Giants recently accepted a one year offer to play for the Philadelphia Eagles. He had a horrific knee injury last season and will likely be in a very limited role for the Eagles this season thus why the Giants had a lack of interest in signing him long term. However, despite the Giants never doing any harm to him, Smith is now talking trash about the team. This hits me hard as Steve Smith was probably my favorite player on the Giants and now I pretty much have no choice but to dislike him.

Smith recently told reporters, "I used to hate the Eagles, now I don't like the Giants." He went on further to state how the Giants had 2 ½ weeks to resign him but didn’t make him an offer that he apparently found worthy of his services. Now I understand that ESPN New York is making this out like the Giants screwed over Smith (because they never defend any New York franchise) but the reality of the situation is that Smith screwed himself over.

Steve Smith turned down a multi-year extension that the Giants offered him during the middle of last season that would have made him a very rich man and then had a knee injury that will probably limit his value the rest of his career. He then goes and doesn’t reply to the Giants contract offer and signs with their arch-rivals. How exactly are the Giants the bad guys in this situation? They were supposed to offer a multi-year deal to a guy coming off career threatening knee surgery? The Eagles sure didn't do that.

So while I loved what Steve Smith did on the field for the Giants, I’m a little ticked off at how he handled this situation. This is the last guy I would expect this kind of stuff from considering he always just kept his mouth shut and played football. It's just a very disappointing situation coming from a guy who I know Giants fans liked and had a lot of respect for. I'm just confused to why he would talk trash to reporters regarding this situation. Way to go from a classy guy to classless in a few weeks Steve Smith. 

We Must Trash A-Rod to Sell Sports News!

It’s a slow time for writing stories about sports. Baseball is the only sport going on, football hasn’t started yet, and there’s not much you can say about the NBA when it’s likely there’s not going to be a season. There’s not exactly a lot to draw the casual fans interest so in come these respective articles from ESPN New York writers Wallace Matthews and Ian O’Connor regarding Alex Rodriguez allegedly attending a celebrity “illegal” underground poker game. Clearly the thing to do that requires the most journalistic integrity in this situation is to cut this story from Star Magazine and then use anonymous sources to bash Alex Rodriguez. Brilliant, let’s look at these articles that I would say border on slander.

The story was initially published by Wallace Matthews who apparently has a personal vendetta against A-Rod and a deep hatred for the Yankees despite covering the team for ESPN New York. (Seriously, go through his archive then the stuff Fire Joe Morgan made fun of him for. It’s ridiculous he’s still in this business) He was one of the brilliant media types who were leading the charge saying the Yankees were better off without A-Rod despite his multiple MVP efforts.

So the title of Matthew’s article is “A-Rod Ban for Poker?” as to suggest that A-Rod is actually facing some kind of ban from baseball like Pete Rose. In reality, it would probably be a small suspension if these allegations from nameless people from a trashy tabloid are true. I mean let’s look at the evidence Matthews provides.

The allegations, first reported by Star Magazine, are that the New York Yankees third baseman played in at least two of the games, one of which took place at a record executive's Beverly Hills mansion, where "cocaine was openly used" and a fight nearly broke out when one of the players refused to pay after losing "more than a half-million dollars."

According to the story, details of which were reportedly provided by another player at the games, Rodriguez "tried to distance himself from the game," once the violence broke out.

So this is the top story on ESPN right now and to summarize it for you it’s basically MLB investigating whether A-Rod was at this poker game and the only evidence they have is hearsay about him being there. This “other player” or “whistleblower” as he’s called later in the article is really the only source given of this information. It’s also not even mentioned that this probably happened a few years ago as all the stories I’ve read regarding these poker games all point back to 2007-2008 but those are also from trashy tabloids. Alright, that’s the story so the responsible thing to do at this point would be to bring up a bunch of unrelated incidents to convince you A-Rod is an awful human being.

MLB is also concerned that Rodriguez's name will resurface in the ongoing federal investigation of Dr. Anthony Galea, the Toronto physician charged with smuggling human growth hormone and other illegal substances into the United States. Galea has treated numerous professional athletes, including Rodriguez and Tiger Woods.

Another story completely based on hearsay regarding A-Rod? Perfect. He wasn’t charged, his name wasn’t brought up, and he wasn’t convicted of anything but you’re right this is pretty relevant. How else can we slander his name Mr. Matthews?

"It's like there's something new with (Rodriguez) every day and it's impossible to keep up with it," a baseball insider said.

What exactly is a baseball insider? Does he work for MLB, an MLB team, or maybe cover baseball? If we were even slightly less vague with this would it really compromise this person’s identity? This is garbage journalism.

According to the baseball executive, MLB has yet to positively determine that Rodriguez took part in the games, which reportedly included actors Tobey Maguire, Leonardo DiCaprio, Ben Affleck and Matt Damon. The man did not know if baseball's investigators had yet spoken to Rodriguez about the allegations, but he confirmed MLB has at least two investigators working on the case

The “baseball executive” doesn’t know that A-Rod was there and has yet to speak to him about it. MLB has someone working on it though! God A-Rod you’re just so lame with your celebrity high stakes poker games. Nobody wants to do shit like that. I hate you! I wish there was more stuff we could bring up unrelated to this situation that could make me hate you more!

Recently, it was revealed that Rodriguez still employs his cousin, Yuri Sucart, after fingering him as the "mule" who transported his performance-enhancing drugs in 2003 after his steroid usage was revealed in a 2009 Sports Illustrated story, despite being told by the Yankees that Sucart would no longer be allowed in the clubhouse and encouraged to keep his distance from him.

Nice, this is exactly what this article needed, another hearsay story about A-Rod doing nothing illegal just seeing his cousin at a hotel while the Yankees were in town. Seriously, it’s not possible A-Rod would see his cousin without being injected with all kinds of steroids or doing something else equally as sinister.

"You get the feeling that Alex says what he thinks he needs to say to get by, and then goes out and does what he wants," the MLB executive said.

Even though we don’t know when this happened? Even though all the stories we just brought up are hearsay and involve him doing nothing illegal? How dare someone do what they want to do? What a selfish piece of shit. Fantastic piece though Wallace Matthews, you’ve managed to write an article based on anonymous sources and connect it to a bunch of other unrelated stories. How do you write for ESPN? How do you call yourself a journalist? Do we really believe there’s not a systematic effort to sell stories on Alex Rodriguez when a story lacking merit like this one is a top story?

A few hours later fellow ESPN New York writer Ian O’Connor published a piece that is right next to Matthews on the top of ESPN headlines asking whether A-Rod is worth the headache. I can assure you this piece is about of the same quality of Wallace Matthews. Let’s plow through this piece of shit.

"This is classic Alex Rodriguez," one high-ranking baseball official said Wednesday night.

Apparently NOBODY wants to give their name to these journalists. They only work for ESPN.

"In a lot of ways Alex is no different than Lindsay Lohan and Britney Spears. He's a thrill seeker, and he does everything he can to be overt. He's a classic example of where we are in society, the age of celebrity, where everyone loves triumphs and tragedies."

No No No. A-Rod is talented. He’s one of the best baseball players ever. Just because we report everything he does like those people doesn’t actually make him similar to those people. If an actual MLB executive thinks that A-Rod is like Lindsay Lohan, maybe he shouldn’t work for MLB.

"It's always something with Alex," said a second baseball official. "The amount of energy everyone has to devote to him is unbelievable.”

The amount of energy you guys spend trying to convince us all A-Rod is the anti-christ is what’s really unbelievable. He is a legendary baseball player, bangs hot celebrities, and attends poker games with Matt Damon. I’m sure nobody would do the same thing is his shoes. God, what a horrible human being. Also, all the cheap shots at A-Rod are from anonymous officials and insiders, as always.

Following his steroid admissions and his hip surgery in the spring of '09, Rodriguez was ambushed in a Tampa diner by longtime friend Gui Socarras and Yanks PR man Jason Zillo. They shouted at A-Rod over breakfast, told him he had to change his self-absorbed ways.

On the eve of the World Series, Rodriguez credited that intervention for sending his inner diva to the bench. "They showed me tough love," A-Rod said, "and I thought from that breakfast on I've stayed with the plan and it's been a good plan."

But in A-Rod's world, good plans can only be followed for so long. No, a poker game among ultra-famous friends doesn't amount to the crime of the century, not when poker tournaments are all the televised rage.

Okay, we’re actually reporting this story as if A-Rod JUST did this although ESPN never reported when this took place. All other sources say it took place years ago and that would make it in fact before everything you just said happened. Talk about spinning a story to make it more relevant. Also, poker tournaments are not “all the televised rage” and really never were. Where do they get these guys?

For the sake of my sanity I can’t quote anymore from these articles as I’ve rambled on long enough. I mean, is this journalism? We have two completely negative pieces written about A-Rod without one legitimate source. They all reference other incidents also without sources to basically prove that A-Rod is some kind of villain. It’s just terrible the things they will write and say to get people to visit their website and watch their network. There’s not a shred of integrity in either of these articles and it’s disgraceful. That’s all I can say. This is a total disgrace.