In article <[log in to unmask]>, Karen Ambrose <[log in to unmask]>
says:
>
>Ryan Robbins' reaction as an umpire is puzzling as
>well.  Isn't it the credo of every official to get the call right.  There are
>certainly occasions in every game where the officials huddle together to
>interpret a rule or to get a 2nd opinion on whether a call was the correct
>one.  Why not use the technology we have to enhance the results of these 2nd
>opinions?
 
I said replay would cause officials to care less about the calls they make.
If an official knows that he can go to the tape, he may be less inclined to
work hard to get the call right the first time around. Replay would give
officials a false sense of security. Some people may argue that officials
would work harder to get the call right because the replay may show they
were wrong. I disagree with this thought because nobody will pay attention
to whether an official was proven to be right or wrong by replays; all
they will care about is what the replay showed.
 
  Off the top of my head I can think of 4 instances where a game
>might have been better served by having replay:
 
>     2) 1993: LSSU scores the apparent tying goal in the
>        NCAA Final vs. Maine, only to have it waived of
>        off.  Maine wins the game and the title.
 
I don't see how this example proves your point. The replays from the
above play were, at best, inconclusive, so I don't see how the game
might have been better served by having replay.
 
 
>     4) 1985: Royals vs. Cardinals World Series. Don
>        Denkinger calls Jorge Orta safe at 1st base when
>        he is clearly out in the 9th inning of the 6th
>        game, Royals down 3 games to 1.  Royals rally,
>        win the game and the Series.
 
Nobody is perfect -- not even cameras. This is an example of an
incorrect judgment call and nobody disputes it. However, calls of
the above type are extremely rare in baseball. Just because a
replay shows the ball disappearing behind a first baseman's mitt
just before the runner reaches first does not mean the runner was
out. The first baseman has to actually have the ball before the
umpire can rule that he caught it. Umpires use what is called
"soundshot" to determine plays at first base. When a ground ball
is hit to an infielder, the first base umpire follows the ball
into the fielder's glove and then follows the throw about 1/2
way to 3/4 of the way to first. The umpire then focuses on the base
while keeping the first baseman's mitt in view in the corner of
his eye. He then listens for the sound of the ball hitting the
glove. If it's a "tie," the runner is out. Two reasons why: There
is no rule that says the tie goes to the runner; but more importantly,
from a physics viewpoint, sound waves take longer to travel from
one point to another than light waves.
 
#I say, lets get the call right, especially when the outcome of a game or the
>season hangs in the balance.
 
While pictures "don't lie," they can be misleading or tell us
nothing altogether. One of the great things about sports is that
it shows that humans are not perfect, not as coaches, not as
players, and not as officials. A fan who criticizes an official
for "missing" a call but who doesn't criticize a player for
missing a pass or taking a shot is being hypocritical. No one
person "loses" a game. The referee may have missed that man in
the crease, but what about the goalie getting cocky and coming
out of the goal too far, only to watch the puck ricochet off the
boards and slide into the net? The linesman may have been premature
in calling offsides, but what about that player who got carried
away and got a 10-minute major for hitting after the whistle because
he couldn't help himself?
 
There is no doubting that everyone wants to get the call right. But we have
to remember that we're talking about a GAME. Nobody's life depends on the
outcome, and if someone's life does, then society needs to take a closer
look at its priorities.
_____________________________________________________________________
Ryan Robbins               "Nothing in fine print is ever good news."
University of Maine                                  -- Andy Rooney
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