Game just ended. 27th batter grounded out (clearly) and umpire called him safe. Holy crap.
Oh wow, that’s a flat out terrible call. I’m sure something will be up on YouTube or MLB.com any moment, but for those who haven’t seen it yet, the batter hit a roller between first and second. Miguel Cabrera fielded it and threw to Galarraga covering first. The ball beat the runner by a step or a step and a half. I’m guessing the ump blew the call because of the way Galarraga tapped the bag. He shuffled his feet kind of awkwardly and it may have made the ump think he didn’t get there while the runner was trying to leg it out. But that’s a really bad blown call. The first base ump is going to feel like shit when he sees the replay, and deservedly so.
Galarraga’s foot was a little high when he got the ball, but he got down in good time. Umps are human and are going to blow calls now and then, but–jeez!–what a horrible, horrible time to do it.
And we don’t have instant replay for this sort of thing… Why?
I said it in the June baseball thread too, but Austin Jackson had made a spectacular catch on the first batter of the inning to preserve it too. What a shame.
I’m unhappy. It was my Indians who were getting spanked, and they deserved it.
I find this sort of thing depressing.
Can the Tigers appeal the call? I realize it wouldn’t be the same, but that was by all rights a perfect game.
Part of me was hoping the Scorer would call it an error just to preserve the no hitter part, but integrity is intergity,
Oh, yeah. Given that the call was “safe”, it has to be scored a hit. Just another beat-out infield single.
Good image of the out:
http://web11.twitpic.com/img/109864396-b62077af91b92c1975729589d9a52d76.4c06fe90-scaled.jpg
Oh, and I’ll give full credit to Galarraga for the way he handled it. Calmly walked back to the mound and got the next batter.
But the umpire isn’t in charge of calling it a hit or an error. He only rules safe or out.
Yeah, but there was nothing remotely error-like about the play. It was a perfectly typical infield single. (Well, except that it was an out.) The scorer can only call that a hit.
E10 
The call was bullshit.
The only thing I can figure is the ump didn’t hear it. Usually on a call at first the ump looks at the bag and listens to the ball hitting the glove. Galarraga snow coned the ball and it probably didn’t make the expected noise of the ball hitting the glove.
Okay, MLB. This is it. Now you have to have replay. You held off for longer than should have, but HD and constant coverage have finally done you in.
This is one straw amongst many, but I want to know why MLB has a monopoly exemption that no other sport has. Isn’t it time for this archaic law to go the way of so many other outdated laws?
Armando Galarraga is a class act.
I have to give Jim Joyce a lot of credit as well - he owned up and apologized immediately:
Many umps (cough cough Joe West) wouldn’t have done so.