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| Joyce rules Young out on Montero's diving tag. |
This is Andy Fletcher (49)'s fifth ejection of 2013.
Andy Fletcher now has 8 points in the UEFL (8 Previous + 2 MLB + -2 Incorrect Call [Crewmate] = 8).
Crew Chief Joe West now has 4 points in the UEFL's Crew Division (4 Previous + 0 Incorrect Call = 4).
This is the 172nd ejection of the 2013 MLB season.
This is the 78th player ejection of 2013. Prior to ejection, Gonzalez was 2-3 in the contest.
This is the Dodgers' 13th ejection of 2013, 1st in the NL West (LAD 13; ARI 9; SF 4; COL, SD 3).
This is Fredi Gonzalez's 4th ejection of 2013 and first since July 25, 2013 (Chad Fairchild; QOC = Incorrect).
This is Adrian Gonzalez's first ejection of 2013 and first since August 15, 2012 (Mike Everitt; QOC = Correct).
This is Andy Fletcher's first ejection since September 14, 2013 (Alex Rios; QOC = Incorrect).
Wrap: Los Angeles Dodgers vs. Arizona Diamondbacks, 9/18/13
Video: D-Backs' relay reaches the plate as Young is crossing it, rotated 1B Umpire Joyce with the call (ARI)
Video: After hitting a double, Gonzalez laments his lost RBI, allegedly criticizing Joyce's hustle (LAD)
Gonzalez is alleged to have said, "If Joyce is going to rotate home he needs to hustle."
ReplyDeleteOuch. Joyce sets himself too early so he's not in a good position and then tries to fix that at the last second and ends up moving his head while the play is happening.
ReplyDeleteI'd like to just see the whole infield on this play. Does Joyce get to home that late because he was just slow, or did it take that long for the batter-runner to touch first?
I posted this in the Bucknor thread but I will also post this here since it relates.
ReplyDeleteAdrian Gonzalez just got ejected by Andy Fletcher, who actually had nothing to do with the call. I was watching this game on ESPN, it was a hit to LF so U3 Drake rotated to the outfield which sent PU West to cover 3rd and U1 Jim Joyce to cover the plate. There was a close play at the plate, and Joyce called Michael Young out at the plate. Joyce was in good position but replay shows that he did miss the call. Gonzalez was the batter who hit the double and after the out call he started chirping from second base. Fletcher immediately threw him out.
ESPN dugout Reporter Pedro Gomez reported Gonzalez said out loud to nobody in particular "If Joyce is going to rotate home he needs to hustle." and that is when Fletcher ejected him. To me, that is a good ejection by Fletcher if that is what Adrian said. I was actually pleasently surprised that Nomar and Mark Mulder in the booth did not criticize Joyce even though he got the call wrong. They kept talking about how tough of a call it was. They also criticized Gonzalez for 1)arguing a play that didn't involve him 2) Hurting his team in the process by removing himself from the game 3) Stating that Joyce actually did hustle and was in good position, he just missed the call.
But they kind of lost me when they got mad at Fletcher for involving self in a situation he had no business involving himself in. While it is true Fletcher had very little to do with this play, he is protecting his crewmmate and telling Adrian it is not OK to say what he said just because the calling Umpire is not in the vicinity.
EDIT: When I posted this, I was only going based on the real time when it looked like Joyce was in good position. After seeing the picture and watching the repla he was not in as good position as I thought he was. Everything else I said stands though.
Anyone else shocked that Joe West actually made it to third? Lol
ReplyDeleteI can easily see how he missed that call. His hustle was fine and it looks like his positioning was OK but from the camera angle that was right behind where Joyce was, I can see how he thought Young's hand was hit by Montero's glove as his hand was coming down towards the plate.
ReplyDeleteIf there is anyone on this crew I would have thought would be a victim of purported lack of hustle, it would be Cowboy Joe, not Jim Joyce. Ah well, a surprise every day. Joyce looks like he read the play oddly (thought the tag would be up the FIRST BASE line, but with home plate not really being in a position to MOVE, who knows why...) and made a position adjustment that was a bit half hearted and as such, he dipped his head as the tag was being applied and lost his angle.
ReplyDeleteI think it's also quite hilarious how on a crew of two crew chiefs in veterans Joe West and Jimmy Joyce it was junior member Rob Drake of all umpires who went to get A-Gon out of the tiff with Fletcher at second base. Joyce, I get, Gonzalez would have torn him to shreds because that's who his beef was with, but Joe West... Well, Joe probably figured Andy stepped into it enough, either that or he was out of breath from the cowboy's full on sprint 90 feet up the third base line.
Vin Scully is class personified. He sees how the call is wrong and obviously so his team the Dodgers lose the crucial third run, and STILL says "It looked like, as far as we can tell, can you imagine how tough..."
And Gonzalez at 2:45 in the LA video: "Be in the position to make the call, hustle! That's it." Mark McGwire seems to nod and just agree so as to spare the Gonzalez wrath, but when Adrian goes to Jerry Hairston, it looks like Hairston's pointing towards first as if to say, "Hey Adrian, with your slow ass chugging around first base, you can't blame the guy for having only 4 seconds to make it from first to home."
3BLE is a good spot to start on a rotation from first - it allows the umpire to move left or right as the case may be and adjust to the catcher's inside hip as he tries to make the play. I wouldn't accuse Joyce of poor hustle, but I will say he was a step or two too short. He barely cleared the hip and unfortunately was unable to gauge the depth of the quasi-swipe tag.
ReplyDeleteAs an aside, POP might have been an easier look in an extremely round-about "lucky" way (don't go point of plate here), it would have seen the hand touch the plate before the tag, but in all reality, would have been blocked out of the bulk of that play. About one step between Joyce and the 3BLE line as drawn would have been ideal.
ReplyDeleteWell time to go with six umpires for the regular season... Goodbye rotations.
ReplyDeleteI don't care much for Joe but I'll cut him some slack on hustle due to his horribly bad knees. Don Sutton talked to Cowboy Joe several weeks ago when his crew was in Atlanta and he said Joe's thinking about hanging it up after this year.
ReplyDeletethe fact the had to slow down the replay is the fact the game is a lot harder to call than most people believe he miss a call but they did six angles it seem like. I got to say The announcers were very professionally whom are they?
ReplyDeleteI know this website has kind of divulged into a play by play analysis but I love Joe West's crews.
ReplyDeleteAndy Fletcher is a guy I would work with anywhere. Rob Drake is a guy I would work with anywhere. Same for Sam Holbrook.
You notice how Fletch just say "Why are you still talking to me? Get out of here..Bye.." and Drake comes over and get Gonzo out of there. This is called HAVE YOUR PARTNERS BACK.
All of you coach sympathizers should read this and it will remind you what umpiring was and should be about.
Thanks Joe West for bringing the idea of leadership back.
The Dodger's play-by-play voice is the great Vin Scully. The best in the business... probably in the history of ever.
ReplyDeleteSounds like a true man
ReplyDeleteAnyone know what Hairston said to Gonzalez toward the end of the video?
ReplyDeleteI'm curious why they have two crew chiefs, Joe West and Jim Joyce, working on the same crew. Was Joyce demoted? I was wondering why he wasn't with his normal crew in New York, where they've been doing the Mets/Giants series this week, with Jeff Nelson as the crew chief and Sam Holbrook taking Joyce's spot.
ReplyDeleteIf that is enough to get ejected, then the game of baseball will continue to fall further behind other sports.....time to wash these old school, thin skinned umpires out - let the flamers begin!
ReplyDeleteWell if the comment by ifr4 (in reply to DJ) is true, then maybe Joe is retiring after this year & Joyce will get Joe's crew next year & this is some sort of preparation for 2014.
ReplyDeleteI'm sure I'm in the minority here, but if that's all he said, I don't really see that being worthy of an ejection.
ReplyDeleteJudging by this and your other comments you have clearly never Umpired a game in your life
ReplyDeleteYou would be very wrong....not only have I umpired, but am also a paying baseball fan - all of these umpires employers! What exactly did Gonzales do wrong? He didn't argue the call?
ReplyDeleteSo, would it be cool if after Gonzales strikes out the next time, the plate umpire pulls his mask off and yells to his partner at first, that is Gonzalez should actually try and get hit next time instead of whiffing? Sounds ridiculous doesn't it. Why, you say. We choose not umpire the game to be liked but to continue to give back to a game we love. As a society, we allow professional athletes to act privileged little brats. This ruins the game at all other levels as children watching these games think that it is ok for them to act that way, even though umpires are just supposed to shut up and take it. Arguing has many different forms. Criticizing an umpire hustle is just as much of an argument as arguing judgement. There is absolutely no place for it in the game.
ReplyDeleteIs this backed up in any rule book or manual?
ReplyDeleteMLB tends to move stronger umpires onto crews that are working the more important games in September. I would imagine that is the reason that Joyce is on this crew and Holbrook worked the much less important Mets-Giants.
ReplyDeleteI don't think there is a major sport where a comment like this wouldn't get you penalized. Disparaging an official is unsportsmanlike conduct.
ReplyDeleteHow many games have you worked?
ReplyDeleteYeh Fanboy. It is called "having your partners back"! And if you are an umpire how many years?
ReplyDelete