The Cleveland Indians’ protest of last Saturday’s loss to the Orioles will likely not be upheld by Major League Baseball, but Tribe skipper Eric Wedge certainly has a point. Awarding a run more than three innings after it crossed the plate makes little sense.
To refresh your memory: In the top half of the third inning at Jacobs Field on Saturday night, the Orioles had runners at the corners with one out and Ramon Hernandez at bat. He hit a sinking line drive that Indians’ center fielder Grady Sizemore snagged with a diving catch, which allowed the runner at third, Nick Markakis, to tag up and score. Miguel Tejada, the runner on first, thought the ball had hit the ground and rounded second base. He also thought there had been two out when Hernandez swung the bat, which is why he didn’t tag up. Sizemore threw the ball to first where Ryan Garko recorded the putout, ending the inning.
Here’s the rub: Home plate umpire Marvin Hudson waved off the Markakis run after the double play, so instead of a 3-1 Baltimore lead, it was 2-1, and the Orioles took the field.
Right away, Orioles’ bench coach Tom Trebelhorn, himself a former big league manager, knew that something was amiss, having been through a like situation in the ?80s with Milwaukee. He huddled with Sam Perlozzo, and bullpen coach Dave Trembley scoured the rule book for help. There it was: Rule 4.9, which essentially says that since Tejada’s out wasn’t a force play, Markakis’ run must count.
By the time the research had been done, it was the bottom of the fourth. Trebelhorn brought it to the umpire’s attention, but the score didn’t change. After five innings, Perlozzo spoke with crew chief Ed Montague, who was umpiring at second. Montague admitted that the run should have counted, and finally it showed up on the scoreboard during the bottom of the sixth, when the Indians were batting.
Enter Eric Wedge. After Hudson had waved the run off originally and the game resumed, Wedge felt it was a moot point.
“All bets are off at that point,” he told reporters after the game, equating the play to an appeal play, and I tend to agree with his logic.
I have to ask, though, how in the world does an entire major league umpiring crew not get this right? I’ve seen this play more than once in my daughter’s fastpitch softball league, for cryin’ out loud, and the umpire has never gotten it wrong. It’s not that obscure. If the crew chief knew the rule up front, why didn’t he say something?
MLB tends to always support their umpires, regardless of the situation, so I’ll assume they’ll do the same thing here. But I have to wonder, where’s the accountability? Umpires don’t have to concern themselves with possibly being sent back to Triple-A if they’re “slumping” in their work. They just have to show up, day after day.
Don’t get me wrong. Nobody’s perfect. There are some terrific umpires working in the big leagues today. It’s moments like this, however, that reflect badly on the entire profession. Perhaps some remedial training now and then would be a good idea.
Contact Phil Wood at [email protected].
