"Does Anybody Here Know How to Play This Game?"

The headline for this blog was infamously uttered by Casey Stengel, abck in the bad old days when he, and the chance of seeing something truly horrific, were the ONLY reasons to watch the Mets play baseball. (Avoid temptation to kick the current Mets' regime when they are down and out here!)

Sadly, in the era of replay, it might as well apply here, too, to the state of officiating in at least 2 professional sports, and quite possibly all of them. Football fans are still wondering when and how football lost its rudder to the point where, on the opening weekend of the season, a game winning touchdown which players and fans alike knew to be a touchdown, turned out not to be -- not because of the ineptitude of officials, but because of the foolish inconsistency of the rules and their definitions, which, in the era of replay, have needed to be recalibrated beyond what is real or measurable on the field at real speed. Case in point -- the critical play in the 4th quarter this past Sunday of an otherwise forgetable game (except to long-suffering Raiders' fans) between Oakland and San Diego. I have watched the super - slo replay multiple times -- and have NO idea whether Philip Rivers' arm was moving forward with the ball at the point of contact which knocked it loose or not! Anyone who tells you they saw it clearly is lying! But, it HAD to be called one way or the other on the field in real time -- even less chance THAT call was anything more than a guess. BUT, the direction in which THAT guess was made determined the outcome, because the replay would be unable to overrule such a close call!! THAT is the element of replay in football that no one seems to be grasping!

Ironically, on a day dangerously close to Bud Selig's own self-inflicted nightmares last Saturday, the ONLY person who got this point, or any others relating to close plays and replay right, was the now retired Bobby Cox, career leader in being thrown out of games! IN EACH of 3 PLAYOFF games, a critical late game run scored after a questionable or blown call. In the Yankee's win, it was a clearly blown strike call by Hunter (father Harry is rolling in his grave) Wendlestadt that kept a Lance Berkman at-bat alive for him to drive in a critical run, and led to the too-quick ejection of Ron Gardenhire by Wendlestadt, after the umpire interjected himself into Gardenhire's attempt to calm his pitcher and team.

In Texas's win, an apparent failed check swing strike 3 by Michael Young was not corrected by the first base (h)ump, allowing Young to hit the crushing 3 run homer on the next pitch, and again leading to a managerial ejection, when Joe Maddon, properly, started barking at the first base umpire from the mound, and then was being escorted away while talking to the home palte umpire, who ejected him, also seemingly too quickly.

To my untrained eye, both calls were wrong. Maybe they were, maybe they weren't. I didn't watch the whole Yankee's game to know how inconsistent Wendlestadt's strike zone had been all game (but I can guess from experience!). Young's check swing really was borderline. Neither would have mattered if the results of the next pitches had been different -- although Berkman hit an absurdly good pitch that he had no right hitting anyway, so don't blame the hit on a mental lapse by the pitcher there -- and the pitchers had been able to do what they are supposed to do.

Ironically, the most obviously wrong call, and the only one NOT to lead to a managerial ejection, came as the Braves lost to San Francisco. Buster Posey was clearly tagged out trying to steal second base, which would have ended the 8th inning. Instead, he was called safe, and scored what turned out to be the winning run one batter later.

When asked why he didn't protest the call, Cox responded that he couldn't see from the dugout, and the reaction of his players on the field did not lead him to think the call was wrong. When further asked about expanding replay, Cox expressed his reservations for both the integrity and the delay of the game!

Even more frightening, In SUnday's Phillies' victory, Chase Utley scored the go ahead run after not one, but THREE blown calls. He took first after NOT being hit by a pitched ball, was called safe at second on a close force out which replay showed was wrong, and probably, although not conclusively, failed to touch third base while scoring on an error by Jay Bruce. The ineptitude of the Reds' defense clearly overshadowed that of the umpires. But did not make it go away.

Indeed, it has gotten so bad, that the leaders of the Players' Association asked for, and have received, a hearing, to discuss the vastly increased number of complaints coming from players about both blown calls, and aggressive attitudes on the part of too many umpires! Maybe THIS will lead to positive improvements -- but I am not holding my breath.

Especially after watching the end of the Capitals' home opener against the formerly respected and classy New Jersey Devils, when new Devils' coach John McLean either couldn't stop, or deliberately sent out, a series of goons with the game out of reach, leading to three successive fighting delays in 6 seconds of play time, all started by Devils' players -- with no pre-emptive action taken by the refs, who sttod watching helplessly, until a 4th attack several seconds later was blatantly one sided!

And hey, the NBA, with their own ref dramas, is about to start -- anyone yet believe Donaghy was the only one with a gambling problem??