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The Phillies and A Little Rain
Reading all the anger directed at Commissioner Bud Selig and Major League Baseball for not postponing last's night's game before it started is becoming a little tiresome. Under the circumstances, what was done was exactly right.
First, the idea of postponing a game based on forecast, please. How many forecasts have our weather geniuses gotten wrong in the last 30 years? How many times have we been warned about the Storm of the Century only to have a couple of inches of snow fall?
The game is scheduled, it's not pouring and the field is playable, you start the game.
Second, the rule that a game becomes official after four innings is a stupid one, especially in the playoffs or World Series.
The game was stopped in the 6th inning after the Rays scored the tying run. Selig says he already decided that if the game had to be stopped it would be a suspended game no matter what the score. That was the right decision.
No team, NO TEAM, should win the World Series without playing a full 9-inning game. Such a win would be tainted throughout history.
Mark my words, MLB will officially change the 5-inning rule for the World Series by next season.
As for the poor fans, please! These are the same Philly fans who can turn out in the snow for Eagles games. They can listen to a weather forecast and dress appropriately or leave for dryer and warmer climes. It is not up to MLB to make sure fan never suffer a moment's discomfort. Suffering is what being a fan is all about. Sitting through a game in such terrible conditions has story value. Living to tell the tale to fellow fans is, after the fact, very cool.
So, if the field is playable, play ball. If it is not, wait until it is and then finish the damn game. Case closed.
First, the idea of postponing a game based on forecast, please. How many forecasts have our weather geniuses gotten wrong in the last 30 years? How many times have we been warned about the Storm of the Century only to have a couple of inches of snow fall?
The game is scheduled, it's not pouring and the field is playable, you start the game.
Second, the rule that a game becomes official after four innings is a stupid one, especially in the playoffs or World Series.
The game was stopped in the 6th inning after the Rays scored the tying run. Selig says he already decided that if the game had to be stopped it would be a suspended game no matter what the score. That was the right decision.
No team, NO TEAM, should win the World Series without playing a full 9-inning game. Such a win would be tainted throughout history.
Mark my words, MLB will officially change the 5-inning rule for the World Series by next season.
As for the poor fans, please! These are the same Philly fans who can turn out in the snow for Eagles games. They can listen to a weather forecast and dress appropriately or leave for dryer and warmer climes. It is not up to MLB to make sure fan never suffer a moment's discomfort. Suffering is what being a fan is all about. Sitting through a game in such terrible conditions has story value. Living to tell the tale to fellow fans is, after the fact, very cool.
So, if the field is playable, play ball. If it is not, wait until it is and then finish the damn game. Case closed.
posted by Spencerblog at
8:57 AM
9 Comments:
Top of the6th should have never been played. Feel free to argue for it but you'll never convince me. Game should be 2-1 top of the 6th. Now we lose Hamels the rest of the game...
Tough. The rub of the game.
first off what is the 4 inning rule.. are you referring to the rule in baseball, that once a game is five innings and a team has a lead that its official? if so never heard of it as the 4 inning rule.
But, sure they should have started the game once both teams agreed. That isn't the question. What is in question is when the weather starts to determine the outcome the game should be called. And yes they should play the full 9 in the world series.
The gripe most Phillies phans will have is that the game was continued past the point where good baseball was being played. When an umpire refuses to call an infield fly rule based on poor weather, then that is the most telling bit of evidence you need.
Gil do you follow baseball or do you just jump on the bandwagon when they are winning? if you do you may recall a game in the NLCS in the 70's between the Dodgers and Phillies. Rain belted down in the Vet and the outfield and infield where sloppy messes. This isn't a new argument, this was one debated long before the advent of sports talk radio, one that lives in Phillies lore, when we had the first "million dollar infield". I was around 10 then and still remember that game like yesterday.
A guy named Steve Carlton lost to Tommy John 4-1. Broke every kids heart.
Right. Of course, 5 innings. Since corrected.
But the point stands. And broken hearts do not an argument make.
Too much manipulation of the game by MLB. Clearly the commissioner was waiting to call the game due to weather until after the threshold was crossed and the Rays had a chance to tie it up. Crap. It was pouring. The game should have been called before the threshold was met and rescheduled. Now if the Rays go on to win the Series Philly fans will feel robbed, and rightfully so.
Gil,
I agree with not canceling the game and with not calling it after 4 innings, but the whole postponement after 6 1/2 innings is bullcrap in every sense.
Selig called the thing after the Rays tied it up - what a friggin coincidence, isn't it?. It should have been postponed one full inning and a half earlier if he truly took it serious - the field looked worse than my years in little league ball. I'm surprised you're taking a different angle in this one - maybe you're a secret TB fan? Did the Bucs and Lightening sell you over in the past?
Again - Bud Selig gave TB a win by ending Hamels night and giving them a clean, dry field for the bottom of the 6th - not to mention fresh pitching - how much do you want to bet that TB attempts to bring someone like Garza in for the final innings?
Here's a good article about that mess of a game: http://blogs.courierpostonline.com/phillies/2008/10/28/the-angriest-place-on-earth/
Excerpts:
The Phils are pissed. Lol...
“That (expletive deleted) guy,” one pitcher said as he saw commissioner Bud Selig before walking out the back door of the clubhouse. “I wouldn’t let him supervise one of my (bowel movements). He has no clue. Not one (expletive deleted) clue.”
And these:
Hamels is now done. He won’t be available to finish this game
B.J. Upton hit an infield single that Jimmy Rollins had in the tip of his glove. Normal conditions, inning over. In these, Upton reached base, stole second and then scored on a flare into left field.
The emotions of the crowd will be diminished and it will be interesting to see how many fans can and will show up.
MLB really screwed this one up.
Regardless, I will be in attendance tonight. I have a hard time believing there won't be a packed house for this one despite the two-day absence (Who throws away a World Series Ticket Stub?)
Have fun at the game tonight, S. I hope you don't mind the delayed start time due to Obama TV.
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