Horror of Horrors: Umpire Phil Cuzzi Revisited!




Above: Phil Cuzzi looking properly positioned to make the call.
Melky Cabrera went like a bat out of hell to get to Mauer's ball.
If I'm the umpire, I'd factor a player's body language as I'm
making the call. Ah, but that would be second-guessing, wouldn't it?

 

Mauer's hit kicking up dust even! Maybe flaming,

smoking divots would help our distracted

umps!

Much maligned umpire Phil Cuzzi was back at it in last night's (Sunday, Sept. 26, 2010) game, acting as the homeplate umpire for the Red Sox - Yankees game in New York.  Obviously, he's honing his ability to achieve the unbelievable!

Observers estimate he called seven different pitches "balls" which should have been strikes for Sox reliever Jonathan Papelbon, pitching in the 9th inning. This ultimately helped the Yankees tie the game at 3, in a game they won later in the 11th inning. The electronic "Pitch Tracker" system that gives feedback to League Officials backs up this analysis. Tsk, tsk.

 Acting as the left-field umpire in Game Two of last year's Divisional Playoffs on Friday, Oct. 9, Cuzzi blew a foul-ball call when Joe Mauer led off the 11th inning with a line drive down the line for what should have been a ground-rule double. Two pitches later, Mauer did single, but the Yankees eventually were able to get out of a bases-loaded, no-out jam and went on to win, 4-3, on a Mark Teixeira home run in the bottom of the inning.

I'm not especially enamored with the idea of instant replay, but repeated instances like this may give me a change of heart!

The horror...Look at it...LOOK AT IT!



May Your Taters Fly Far!
Twinkler Out