Thursday, August 7, 2014

MLB Instant Replay Reviews 898-902: August 7, 2014

August 7, 2014 featured the following MLB Umpire Instant Replay Review decisions:

TypeR#PosUmpireRU#TeamRT#NameInnPreResult
R8981BEveritt, Mike8PIT39Clint Hurdle8OutOverturned
R8992BKellogg, Jeff9BAL25Buck Showalter3SafeStands
R9003BDeMuth, Dana8ARI34Kirk Gibson9SafeStands
R9011BGonzalez, Manny17LAD32Don Mattingly6SafeOverturned
R9021BGonzalez, Manny18LAA32Mike Scioscia8OutConfirmed

Instant Replay Review Decision Video Clips (MLB.com/MLBAM):
Video 898: MIA@PIT: Out call overturned in the 8th inning
Video 899: BAL@TOR: Safe call at second stands in the 3rd inning
Video 900: KC@ARI: Safe call stands at third base in the 9th
Video 901: LAD@LAA: Safe call overturned in the 6th inning
Video 902: LAD@LAA: Out call confirmed in the 8th inning

Wednesday, August 6, 2014

MLB Instant Replay Reviews 888-897: August 6, 2014

August 6, 2014 featured the following MLB Umpire Instant Replay Review decisions:

TypeR#PosUmpireRU#TeamRT#NameInnPreResult
R888HPHudson, Marvin12MIN28Ron Gardenhire2BallOverturned
R889HPWoodring, Tom5NYY25Joe Girardi8OutOverturned
R8902BNelson, Jeff9PHI29Ryne Sandberg1OutStands
R8911BReyburn, DJ17BAL23Buck Showalter7SafeOverturned
R8921BReyburn, DJ18BAL24Buck Showalter8SafeStands
R8931BReyburn, DJ19TOR39John Gibbons8OutStands
R8941BCederstrom, Gary11BOS28John Farrell3OutOverturned
R8951BGuccione, Chris10CHC43Rick Renteria9OutStands
R8961BRandazzo, Tony11KC29Ned Yost9OutOverturned
R8972BGonzalez, Manny16LAA31Mike Scioscia4SafeOverturned

Instant Replay Review Decision Video Clips (MLB.com/MLBAM):
Video 888: SD@MIN: Challenge overturns called ball in the 2nd
Video 889: DET@NYY: Play at plate overturned in the 8th
Video 890: HOU@PHI: Out call stands after challenge in the 1st
Video 891: BAL@TOR: Safe call at first overturned in 7th inning
Video 892: BAL@TOR: Safe call at first stands in 8th inning
Video 893: BAL@TOR: Out call at first stands after review in 8th
Video 894: BOS@STL: Kelly's ruled out, overturned in 3rd
Video 895: CHC@COL: Out call at first stands after review in 9th
Video 896: KC@ARI: Out call on Moustakas overturned in 9th
Video 897: LAD@LAA: Safe call at second overturned in 4th inning

Case Play 2014-3: What of an Extra Ball on the Field?

An extra ball flew onto Cleveland's playing field during play, producing confusion that ultimately resulted in an out at third base. With none out and two on (R1, R3), Indians batter Yan Gomes hit a double off Reds pitcher Johnny Cueto to deep right field and off the outfield wall, where it was fielded by right fielder Jay Bruce, who threw to cut-off man second baseman Kris Negron to shortstop Zack Cozart, who threw to third baseman Ramon Santiago as Indians R1 David Murphy, who had rounded third base, attempted to dive back into the bag as the tag was applied, resulting in the inning's first out as called by 3B Umpire Gerry Davis.

Replays indicate that during play and while the live ball was being thrown back towards the infield, Reds pitcher Jumbo Diaz, warming in the right field bullpen, completely airmailed a practice toss over the outfield fence and onto the playing field, where the bullpen ball coincidentally rolled toward F4 Negron, who was busy catching F9 Bruce's throw. After being tagged out at third, R1 Murphy pointed toward the second, unauthorized baseball as the argument was picked up, to no avail, by Terry Francona.

Question: Is this the proper call and application of rules? If not, what should have transpired and what rule(s) or interpretation (e.g., MLBUM) supports this? If any runners should be placed, do so (if applicable).

This Case Play is of the Group variety and expires no earlier than the final out of the final regularly scheduled game Friday, August 8. Participants may receive up to two UEFL points for discussion and solution.

Wrap: Cincinnati Reds vs. Cleveland Indians, 8/5/14
Video: Reds 'pen airmails a pitch, throwing a second baseball on the playing field, distracting Murphy

Tuesday, August 5, 2014

MLB Ejection 145: Mark Ripperger (5; Matt Holliday)

HP Umpire Mark Ripperger ejected Cardinals LF Matt Holliday for arguing a strike three call in the bottom of the 7th inning of the Red Sox-Cardinals game. With two out and one on, Holliday took a 1-2 sinker from Red Sox pitcher Burke Badenhop for a called third strike. Replays indicate the pitch was located over the outer edge of home plate and at the hollow of the knee (px 0.81, pz 1.82 / sz_bot 1.83 [MOE 1.75]), the call was correct. At the time of the ejection, the contest was tied, 2-2. The Cardinals ultimately won the contest, 3-2.

This is Mark Ripperger (90)'s fifth ejection of the 2014 MLB Regular Season.
Mark Ripperger now has 9 points in the UEFL Standings (4 Prev + 3 AAA + 2 Correct Call = 9).
Crew Chief Gary Cederstrom now has 0 points in Crew Division (-1 Previous + 1 Correct Call = 0).

This is the 145th ejection of the 2014 MLB Regular Season.
This is the 61st player ejection of 2014. Prior to ejection, Holliday was 1-4 in the contest.
This is the Cardinals' 5th ejection of 2014, 3rd in the NL Central (PIT 8; CHC 7; STL 5; MIL 4; CIN 3).
This is Matt Holliday's first ejection since June 25, 2011 (Marvin Hudson; QOC = N [Balls/Strikes]).
This is Mark Ripperger's first ejection since July 22, 2014 (Joe Maddon; QOC = N [Balls/Strikes]).

Wrap: Boston Red Sox vs. St. Louis Cardinals, 8/5/14
Video: After striking out to end the 7th, Holliday slams his bat, yells and is promptly dismissed (STL)

MLB Instant Replay Reviews 880-887: August 5, 2014

August 5, 2014 featured the following MLB Umpire Instant Replay Review decisions:

TypeR#PosUmpireRU#TeamRT#NameInnPreResult
R880HPGibson, Greg11CIN24Bryan Price9OutStands
r8811BCuzzi, Phil15CIN25Bryan Price9SafeOverturned
r882HPNauert, Paul7WAS30Matt Williams6OutConfirmed
R8831BGibson, Tripp11SF35Bruce Bochy3OutOverturned
R8841BGibson, Tripp12MIL20Ron Roenicke9SafeOverturned
R8851BHudson, Marvin11SD23Bud Black6SafeOverturned
R8862BGorman, Brian10ATL22Fredi Gonzalez3SafeStands
R8871BReynolds, Jim19LAD31Don Mattingly1SafeStands

Instant Replay Review Decision Video Clips (MLB.com/MLBAM):
Video 880: CIN@CLE: Out call at home stands after review in 9th
Video 881: CIN@CLE: Overturned call ends game, gives Cueto CG
Video 882: NYM@WSH: Campbell nabs runner, call confirmed in 6th
Video 883: SF@MIL: Pence's out call at first overturned in 3rd
Video 884: SF@MIL: Call at first base overturned in 9th inning
Video 885: SD@MIN: Safe call at first overturned in the 6th
Video 886: ATL@SEA: Safe call at second stands in 3rd inning
Video 887: LAA@LAD: Trout's single off Kershaw stands in 1st

Monday, August 4, 2014

MLB Ejection 144: Quinn Wolcott (4; Joe Maddon)

1B Umpire Quinn Wolcott ejected Tampa Bay Rays Manager Joe Maddon for arguing a check swing (ball) call in the bottom of the 10th inning of the Rays-Athletics game. With one out and two on, Athletics batter Josh Donaldson attempted to check his swing on a 2-2 fastball from Rays pitcher Grant Balfour for a called third ball. Replays indicate Donaldson did not attempt to strike the pitch (abuse of discretion standard, as in E-045 Barksdale 1), the call was correct. After review by the UEFL Appeals Board, the call is now incorrect.* At the time of the ejection, the contest was tied, 2-2. The Athletics ultimately won the contest, 3-2, in 10 innings.

This is Quinn Wolcott (81)'s fourth ejection of the 2014 MLB Regular Season.
Quinn Wolcott now has 12 points in the UEFL Standings (14 Previous + 2 MLB - 4 Incorrect Call = 12).
Crew Chief Dale Scott now has 1 point in the Crew Division (1 Previous + 0 Incorrect Call = 1).
*The UEFL Appeals Board reversed the Original Ruling (QOCY => QOCN) in a 3-1-0 vote.

This is the 144th ejection of the 2014 MLB Regular Season.
This is the 67th Manager ejection of 2014.
This is the Rays' 10th ejection of 2014, T-1st in the AL East (BOS, TB 10; NYY 6; TOR 4; BAL 2).
This is Joe Maddon's first ejection since July 22, 2014 (Mark Ripperger; QOC = N [Balls/Strikes]).
This is Quinn Wolcott's first ejection since June 21, 2014 (Bob Melvin; QOC = U [USC/DiMuro]).

Wrap: Tampa Bay Rays vs. Oakland Athletics, 8/4/14
Video: Tossed upon exiting the dugout, Maddon gets Wolcott's "silently chewing gum treatment" (OAK)

MLB Ejection 143: Ben May (1; Terry Collins)

HP Umpire Ben May ejected Mets Manager Terry Collins for arguing a strike three call in the bottom of the 7th inning of the Giants-Mets game. With two out and none on, Mets batter Lucas Duda took a 3-2 fastball from Giants pitcher Javier Lopez for a called third strike. Replays indicate the pitch was located over the outer half of home plate and below the hollow of the knee (px .347, pz 1.42 / sz_bot 1.86), the call was incorrect. At the time of the ejection, the game was tied, 3-3. The Giants ultimately won the contest, 4-3.

This is Ben May (97)'s first ejection of the 2014 season.
Ben May now has -2 points in the UEFL Standings (0 Prev + 3 AAA - 1 Penalty - 4 Incorrect Call = -2).
Crew Chief Brian O'Nora now has 1 point in the Crew Division (1 Previous + 0 Incorrect Call = 1).

This is the 143rd ejection of the 2014 MLB Regular Season.
This is the 66th Manager ejection of 2014.
This is the Mets' 6th ejection of 2014, T-1st in the NL East (ATL, NYM, PHI 6; MIA 5; WAS 1).
This is Terry Collins' first ejection since June 11, 2014 (Gary Cederstrom; QOC = U [Replay Review]).
This is Ben May's first career MLB ejection.

Wrap: San Francisco Giants vs. New York Mets, 8/4/14
Video: Several Metropolitans dispute May's low strike, ultimately culminating in Collins' exile (NYM)

MLB Instant Replay Reviews 877-879: August 4, 2014

August 4, 2014 featured the following MLB Umpire Instant Replay Review decisions:

TypeR#PosUmpireRU#TeamRT#NameInnPreResult
r8772BBaker, Jordan8CWS27Robin Ventura3Not HRConfirmed
R8781BGibson, Greg10CLE34Terry Francona6SafeOverturned
R8792BTumpane, John10TB41Joe Maddon2OutOverturned

Instant Replay Review Decision Video Clips (MLB.com/MLBAM):
Video 877: TEX@CWS: Umpires review potential home run in the 3rd
Video 878: CIN@CLE: Safe call overturned in the 6th inning
Video 879: TB@OAK: Out call at second overturned in the 2nd

MLB Ejection & Replay Review Stats: Week 18 Sabermetrics

Ejection & Instant Replay Review Statistics and Sabermetrics are now available for MLB Week 18. As the numbers and trends solidify, Close Call Sports and the Umpire Ejection Fantasy League continues with the strategic statistics reporting, the first measure of umpire-centric sabermetrics in professional baseball. Visit Instant Replay Review Statistics 101: Week 1 Sabermetrics for an introduction to Ejection & Replay Review definitions and terms, including Review Affirmation Percentage (RAP), also known as QOC (Quality of Correctness), Replay Percentage of Success (RPS), alternatively, 1.000 - RAP = RPS, and Manager's Challenge Success Percentage (CSP). Also included is Team Success Percentage (TSP), which includes all Replay Reviews; both Manager's Challenges and Crew Chief Reviews.

With Week 18 of the MLB Regular Season in the books, the UEFL recaps traditional ejections, plus professional baseball's "this time it counts" living experiment with Instant Replay Reviews.

We begin this week's sabermetric analysis with umpire ejections. Games Played: 1663 of 2430.
Ejections: 142 (on pace for 207 [-2 from last wk] Ejections). (Compare to: 180 Ejections in 2013)
"Team most active" (Team with most Ejections): Boston Red Sox - 10 (Rays - 9, Pirates - 8).
"Team least active" (Team with least Ejections): CLE Indians, LA Angels, WAS Nationals - 1.
"Manager ejections leader" (Manager ejected most often): Rick Renteria, Ron Gardenhire - 5.
"Player ejections leader" (Player ejection leader): Yunel Escobar - 3.
"Umpire leader" (Umpire with most Ejections): Dan Bellino - 6.
"Crew most active" (Crew Chief whose crew has most Ejections): Bill Miller - 12.
"Most accurate umpire" (Umpire with greatest Simple QOC): Mark Carlson - 1.000 in 4/4.
"Overall QOC percentage" (Overall QOC Y value): .757 (81 Y / 26 N) + 35 Irrecusable = 142 Total.
"Team Status Pre-Ejection" (Winning-Losing-Tied [W-L-T] Record prior to Ejection): 35-75-32.
"Team Status Post-Ejection" (Game Record [W-L]): 53-89. (Delta: 18-14; WPCT: .563).

Next up is the category of Instant Replay Reviews.
Replay Reviews & Decisions Rendered: 876 (on pace for 1,278 [+16 from last wk] Replay Reviews)
- Crew Chief Reviews (Replay Reviews initiated by the Umpire Chief): 148 (17%), .715 RAP.
- Manager's Challenges (Replay Reviews initiated by the Club Manager): 728 (83%), .484 RAP.
"Team Most Used" (Made use of Replay Review most often): Chicago Cubs - 42.
"Team Least Used" (Least use of Replay): Milwaukee Brewers - 19.
"Manager's Challenge Leaders" (Most challenges filed): Rick Renteria - 38.
"Most successful Manager" (Manager with highest CSP): Mike Redmond - .761 (16/21).
"League average Manager" (Average CSP for all Managers): .517.
"Least successful Manager" (Manager with lowest CSP): Mike Matheny - .211 (4/19).
"Most successful team in review" (Team with highest TSP): New York Yankees - .667 (16/24).
"Least successful team in review" (Team with lowest TSP): Toronto Blue Jays - .237 (9/38).
"Umpire most questioned" (Most Replay Reviews): Jim Reynolds - 18 (.667 RAP).
"Crew most questioned" (Crew Chief whose crew has most Reviews): Bill Miller - 51 (.313 RAP).
"Most accurate umpire" (Umpire with greatest RAP): Chris Guccione - 1.000 in 9/9.
"Ump of greatest overturn" (Umpire with lowest RAP): Tom Woodring - .000 in 0/4.
"Overall affirmation or QOC percentage" (Overall RAP): .527 (462/876 Affirmed Replay Reviews).
Team Status Pre-Review (Winning or Losing prior to review [Win-Loss-Tied]): 300-343-228.
Team Status Post-Review (Game Record [W-L]): 415-456. (Delta: 115-113; WPCT: .504).

Actual data (Raw Data for Replay Reviews):

Sunday, August 3, 2014

MLB Instant Replay Reviews 869-876: August 3, 2014

August 3, 2014 featured the following MLB Umpire Instant Replay Review decisions:

TypeR#PosUmpireRU#TeamRT#NameInnPreResult
R8691BWinters, Mike11CIN23Bryan Price3SafeStands
R8702BGibson, Tripp10WAS29Matt Williams5SafeStands
R871HPDanley, Kerwin12CWS26Robin Ventura8FoulOverturned
R8722BBarrett, Lance15ARI33Kirk Gibson3SafeOverturned
r873HPHickox, Ed11PIT38Clint Hurdle8OutConfirmed
R8742BScheurwater, Stu3SD21Bud Black4OutOverturned
R8752BScheurwater, Stu4SD22Bud Black8SafeOverturned
R8762BScheurwater, Stu5ATL21Fredi Gonzalez8OutConfirmed

Instant Replay Review Decision Video Clips (MLB.com/MLBAM):
Video 869: CIN@MIA: Reds challenge safe, stands in bottom 3rd
Video 870: PHI@WSH: Nationals challenge safe call, stands in 5th
Video 871: MIN@CWS: White Sox challenge foul, overturned in 8th
Video 872: PIT@ARI: D-backs challenge safe, overturned in 3rd
Video 873: PIT@ARI: Umps review out at plate, confirmed in 8th
Video 874: ATL@SD: Padres challenge out, overturned in 4th
Video 875: ATL@SD: Padres challenge safe call, overturned in 8th
Video 876: ATL@SD: Braves challenge out call, confirmed in 8th