Worst Baseball Call I’ve Seen in Years

[StormHawk42]

Not even being a homer, I was absolutely stunned but this call.

Here was the situation:
Elimination game for conference tourney and Iowa is down 2 in extras. Iowa has bases jacked with 0 outs. Ump calls runners interference at 2nd which makes it a double play and sends the first two runners back to 2nd and 3rd so instead of down 1, with 1 out and runners on the corners, they were still down 2, with 2 outs. Except the runner slid straight at the bag and didn't touch the shortstop. Horrible.

 

[torbee]

I honestly didn't think I'd live to see Iowa get more screwed by officiating than in last November's Minnesota football game but that is the worst baseball call I've seen in my life, and I've been watching baseball since 1978!

Just a total rat-fu--ing of Iowa by a clearly biased ump.

 

[StormHawk42]

Also, Heller had an excellent raw meltdown and he hardly ever loses it. Earned this one.

 

[Aardvark86]

Did 2B even have the bag?

 

[St. Louis Hawk]

No interference
Not a fair catch
“Fumble” recovery by Michigan after the whistle

That is three bullshit calls in less than a year

 

[torbee]

Also, Heller had an excellent raw meltdown and he hardly ever loses it. Earned this one.

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I hope he called that ump a kocksucker - he deserves it.

 

[Derekd3408]

Baseball has the worst officiating I've ever seen. You see terrible calls every day at the sports highest level.

 

[torbee]

Baseball has the worst officiating I've ever seen. You see terrible calls every day at the sports highest level.

I am ready for AI/Robot umps.

Past due.

 

[Whiskeydeltadeltatango]

Yeah, that was bad.

 

[SSG T]

Not even being a homer, I was absolutely stunned but this call.

Here was the situation:
Elimination game for conference tourney and Iowa is down 2 in extras. Iowa has bases jacked with 0 outs. Ump calls runners interference at 2nd which makes it a double play and sends the first two runners back to 2nd and 3rd so instead of down 1, with 1 out and runners on the corners, they were still down 2, with 2 outs. Except the runner slid straight at the bag and didn't touch the shortstop. Horrible.

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I don't think the dude at 2B even had the ball while on the bag, looked like he pulled early

 

[binsfeldcyhawk2]

F'ing up the call is one thing....'confirming" it on review is inexcusable. Mind blowing.

 

[torbee]

Did 2B even have the bag?

He did not - and I'm OK with allowing the "proximity" out on a double play attempt - that too is standard baseball.

But to call interference on a baserunner that hit the base and missed the SS that was off the bag is so f---ing ridiculous my brain can't even wrap around the concept.

So, so, so egregious.

 

[Aardvark86]

F'ing up the call is one thing....'confirming" it on review is inexcusable. Mind blowing.

agreed. though i can't imagine that a different angle would suggest a contrary conclusion, i will note that we've only seen one angle here.

 

[onlyTheObvious]

I am ready for AI/Robot umps.

Past due.

AAA allows teams to challenge balls and strikes. Witnessed it at Iowa cubs game a couple weeks ago. Very fast and cuts down on the screw jobs in critical situations.

 

[TJ8869]

I can almost kind of understand getting the call wrong in real time. But they reviewed it. And after the review they didn’t just say the call on the field “stands” because there wasn’t suifficient video evidence to overturn the call. They went the extra mile of catastrophic stupidity and declared that the replay “confirmed” the call.

Is there some obscure moronic rule in college baseball like the runner’s hand can’t go above shoulder level as he slides, or some similar shit? Because otherwise there is no justification for that decision.

 

[BelemNole]

Bad call but not the worst i've seen this year.

 

[Aardvark86]

I can almost kind of understand getting the call wrong in real time. But they reviewed it. And after the review they didn’t just say the call on the field “stands” because there wasn’t suifficient video evidence to overturn the call. They went the extra mile of catastrophic stupidity and declared that the replay “confirmed” the call.

Is there some obscure moronic rule in college baseball like the runner’s hand can’t go above shoulder level as he slides, or some similar shit? Because otherwise there is no justification for that decision.

SECTION 51. The act of an offensive player, umpire or nongame person who interferes with; physically or verbally hinders; confuses; or impedes any fielder attempting to make a play.


Maybe he "confused" him. Or called him a name.

 

[Derekd3408]

I am ready for AI/Robot umps.

Past due.

Long past due. I don't mind good frame work by a catcher to get a called strike on a ball just outside the zone, but in April there were a crazy amount of strikeouts called on pitches more than 4 inches outside the zone. That's atrocious.

 

[QChawks]

 

[StormHawk42]

Some of the chatter I’m seeing suggests the call was made because the runner slid too late??

 

[torbee]

Some of the chatter I’m seeing suggests the call was made because the runner slid too late??

Did you watch the video?

It’s as routine a slide as you will ever see.

 

[TJ8869]

Some of the chatter I’m seeing suggests the call was made because the runner slid too late??

That would potentially be a valid explanation if it was true. But Huckstorf had already started sliding when the fielder caught the ball. Was he supposed to defy the laws of physics and stop his slide?

 

[Aardvark86]

Did you watch the video?

It’s as routine a slide as you will ever see.

Yeah, I actually took a second look for precisely that issue, but it was indeed completely vanilla.

 

[Whiskeydeltadeltatango]

Some of the chatter I’m seeing suggests the call was made because the runner slid too late??

I don't see that at all. Shit the runner is damn near past the base when the ball is thrown.

 

[Aardvark86]

That would potentially be a valid explanation if it was true. But Huckstorf had already started sliding when the fielder caught the ball. Was he supposed to defy the laws of physics and stop his slide?

 

[HawkinCT]

What's worse...that bitch ump didn't even let Heller get his pound of flesh.

Not only had he somehow "confirmed" this call but during the review he also prepared himself to take about 1 second of the ass chewing he deserves before he tossed him.

 

[Hawk-A-Doodle-Doo]

Some of the chatter I’m seeing suggests the call was made because the runner slid too late??

So he should have done this and then it all would have been okay?

 

[Hawk-A-Doodle-Doo]

We would have been better off with Angel Hernandez umpiring this game. Think about that for a moment.

 

[TJ8869]

Perhaps the worst part of this ruling was sending the other two runners back to their original bases and taking a run off the board. Those guys would have advanced even if Huckstorf stopped halfway to second base and just sat down in abject surrender.

 

[Hawk-A-Doodle-Doo]

Perhaps the worst part of this ruling was sending the other two runners back to their original bases and taking a run off the board. Those guys would have advanced even if Huckstorf stopped halfway to second base and just sat down in abject surrender.

That would have constituted sitting too soon and thus......interference.

 

[Aardvark86]

We would have been better off with Angel Hernandez umpiring this game. Think about that for a moment.

nah, your preceding three batters would have been called out on strikes prior to your manager being ejected.

 

[StormHawk42]

Did you watch the video?

It’s as routine a slide as you will ever see.

Didn’t say I agreed Torb!

 

[hawkeye54545]

As someone who played infield at the minor league level I have never been involved in an interference call that was that bad. Not even close. That was atrocious.

 

[FAUlty Gator]

Not even being a homer, I was absolutely stunned but this call.

Here was the situation:
Elimination game for conference tourney and Iowa is down 2 in extras. Iowa has bases jacked with 0 outs. Ump calls runners interference at 2nd which makes it a double play and sends the first two runners back to 2nd and 3rd so instead of down 1, with 1 out and runners on the corners, they were still down 2, with 2 outs. Except the runner slid straight at the bag and didn't touch the shortstop. Horrible.

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I can’t believe that was replayed and confirmed. Crazy.

 

[ZachJump]

Um…that is clear interference

Granted I was only taught about umpiring from major league umpires…but raising your hand like that…inadvertently or not…is interference

 

[WadeLookingbill]

Um…that is clear interference

Granted I was only taught about umpiring from major league umpires…but raising your hand like that…inadvertently or not…is interference

How 'bout no. That was a natural part of his slide, and had no impact on the play (the turn was "inside" and it was runner's outside arm that was elevated as part of his slide).
Did you see the play that Aaron Judge got away with earlier this year due to it being a part of his slide?! (and yes the umps said they missed that call, but the point is they missed it because they thought it was part of his slide, i.e. you can raise your hand like that if it's a natural part of your slide)

 

[WhiteSoxClone]

I honestly didn't think I'd live to see Iowa get more screwed by officiating than in last November's Minnesota football game but that is the worst baseball call I've seen in my life, and I've been watching baseball since 1978!

Just a total rat-fu--ing of Iowa by a clearly biased ump.

Someone should do a poll of the worst calls ever against the Hawkeyes. I mean ones that even a totally unbiased neutral observer would agree were screw jobs. This one would definitely be worthy of inclusion in the poll, but for me Jim Bain's foul call on Kevin Boyle against Purdue in 1982 would be the worst followed by the offsides call on the on-side kick against Florida in 2006. This one would probably be #3. Cooper DeJean's fair catch might be #4. But honestly, I'm not a big enough Hawkeyes fan to think of all of the possibilities.

 

[ZachJump]

I would like to see a video showing the other side…did that hand make contact with the fielder?

Not sure I would have called it…it would look completely different from where the Umpire vs this video….but if that is all the video they had to review it…definitely upholding it

 

[TJ8869]

Someone should do a poll of the worst calls ever against the Hawkeyes. I mean ones that even a totally unbiased neutral observer would agree were screw jobs. This one would definitely be worthy of inclusion in the poll, but for me Jim Bain's foul call on Kevin Boyle against Purdue in 1982 would be the worst followed by the offsides call on the on-side kick against Florida in 2006. This one would probably be #3. Cooper DeJean's fair catch might be #4. But honestly, I'm not a big enough Hawkeyes fan to think of all of the possibilities.

Probably the worst one I’ve seen is Clinton Solomon being penalized 15 yards for allowing a Florida defender to drag him to the ground by Solomon’s facemask.

 

[TJ8869]

I would like to see a video showing the other side…did that hand make contact with the fielder?

Given that it was Huckstorf’s outside/right hand that was raised and the fielder was on the inside of the basepath, it’s just about logistically impossible that the hand made contact with the fielder or even obstructed his ability to throw to first in any manner.