"Of course, I'm happier with the change in playoff format than I am with the spontaneous change to the infield fly rule."
And that's the thing that seems to be making everybody so upset: that the umps changed the interpretation of the infield fly rule and cost the Braves a rally that might have (unlikely, but possibly) allowed them to come back and tie up the score. But, in Comments to rule 2.00 (Definition of Terms: Infield Fly) in the MLB Rule Book, it specifically states "The umpire must rule also that a ball is an infield fly, even if handled by an outfielder, if, in the umpire's judgment, the ball could have been as easily handled by an infielder."
It's obviously an extremely rare situation (I've never seen it called that way before), but the umpire got the interpretation of the rule correct; the only argument would be whether or not the ball came down close enough to the infield that it "could have been as easily handled by an infielder." And, since shortstop Pete Kozma was one of the two Cardinals calling for the ball that eventually dropped between them, there's not much argument to be made there.
So, no, there was no spontaneous change to the rule...that's just apparently the first time most Atlanta Braves fans saw the rule implemented that way.
Doug Fields, baseball fan and occasional umpire
Tampa, FL
---------- Original Message --------
Subject: Re: [TV orNotTV] Wild TV Baseball
From: Darren Glass <[email protected]>
Date: Sat, October 06, 2012 11:33 am
To: [email protected]
I agree with this in principle. However, as a Braves fan I think we should have waited another year or two to change the format in this way.Of course, I'm happier with the change in playoff format than I am with the spontaneous change to the infield fly rule.- dg
TV or Not TV .... The Smartest (TV) People!
You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google
Groups "TV or Not TV" group.
To post to this group, send email to [email protected]
To unsubscribe from this group, send email to
[email protected]
For more options, visit this group at
http://groups.google.com/group/tvornottv?hl=en
