Running 2011 Baseball Thread, Vol. I: Dedicated to spnited

Jeff Schultz's column in the AJC is hilarious:

http://blogs.ajc.com/jeff-schultz-blog/2011/07/27/a-long-night-an-awful-call-a-braves-win-led-by-scott-proctor/?cxntfid=blogs_jeff_schultz_blog

Meals' explanation:

 

With bubbler, I think it is a fanboy thing. Loss for the Pirates is good for the Brewers. How long has it been since anybody had to care about that?

 

The biggest crime of all: The blown call has completely overshadowed letsgopiratesgirl.

 

First of all, it wasn't a bang-bang play, as was mentioned above. Lugo was 8 feet from home plate when the ball got there.

Second, McKenry should have made it more obvious of a tag instead of swiping. And if he was set on the swipe, then he should have immediately pivoted and thrown to first for the double play.

Third, Meals makes that an out call if it's the fifth or sixth inning. He was looking for a reason to end the game at that point, and there was an opening there, the possibility that McKenry missed the tag, so Meals burst through that opening and called Lugo safe. Game over, let's go eat. Just my opinion, and I'm biased, but I can't see any other reason to make that call.

 

My Jays make a bit of a splash in the trade market, sending Jason Frasor and Zach Stewart to the White Sox for Edwin Jackson and Mark Teahen.

Olney reports that the Cards will send Colby Rasmus, Trever Miller, Brian Tallet and P.J. Walters to the Jays for Jackson, Marc Rzepczynski, Dotel and Corey Patterson. Miller will then be flipped to the White Sox.

Whew....

 

It's a lot more than a .00001 percent chance.

 

Listen, I think he was out too, but the depth of field on that photo sucks, and a blurry picture isn't going to convince me unequivocally.

 

Quick Pitch is my go-to show over SportsCenter when it comes to baseball highlights overnight. Yes, they did show the replays, and yes, they had video from Hurdle's newser and graphics with the ump's statement. Back in the day, the WWL would have been all over this, but why report controversy when Brett Favre's latest sneeze demands full coverage?

Could it have been better? Yes ... but I doubt there's a producer and/or reporter on duty overnight at MLB Network. But it beats the hell out of earlier this month when it totally ignored the fan who died in pursuit of a ball tossed into the bleachers in Arlington.

 

The thing no one is bringing up in the haste to kill the umpire ... the Pirates didn't score for 16 consecutive innings in that game.

If you fail at the plate on that kind of level and then leave it in the hands of the umpire, you only have yourself to blame.

 

Check that ... they didn't score for 17 consecutive innings.

 

Actually, neither team scored between the third and 19th inning.

 

Bucs stranded 16, Braves 23.