Baseball Umpire Blows Call In Viral Style
Copyright MLB
I’m intrigued by major league baseball umpire Jim Joyce’s blown call during the Cleveland Indians / Detroit Tigers game this week. The ground ball play to first base would have given Detroit pitcher Armando Galarraga only the 21st perfect game in major league history, and it would have been the third perfect frame hurled by a pitcher this season which is yet another rarity.
Joyce merely had to call the routine play what it was, an obvious game ending out. He blew it. Laid an egg. Hundreds of thousands have watched in disbelief on ESPN, YouTube and elsewhere over the past 48 hours. And while a sports highlight racking up thousands if not millions of views online is commonplace, this one started for all the wrong reasons.
Through it all Joyce conveys a dash of heroism as does Galarraga, for they both handled the aftermath with poise and professionalism. Joyce went to Galarraga in the clubhouse after seeing the postgame replay and apologized. Galarraga accepted with an embrace, giving Joyce a free pass and well more than the typical respect due an umpire with 20+ years experience considering these circumstances.
Joyce’s genuine emotion and willingness to apologize immediately to Galarraga personally and in press conferences displayed character that frankly too few people in more important public and private sector positions ever exhibit. We are, after all, just talking about a game grown men play for millions of dollars. We’re entering day 46 of an oil spill disaster that is light years more critical than an umpire’s gaffe. (Jay Baer blends these topics well in this Thursday post.)
Both Joyce and Galarraga were honest and selfless in the eye of a media storm and stand to be remembered more for how they handled the perfect game that wasn’t rather than if Joyce would’ve just made the right call in the first place.
Major League Baseball benefits too.
The League, still in need of distancing itself from the steroid era and addressing frequent complaints about games too long for a fast paced world, needed a shot in the arm and it came in the least likely of forms. In Detroit no less.
Tens of thousands of people have viewed the play and Joyce’s press conference comments online. Millions more have seen it on ESPN or heard it discussed on sports radio. A YouTube video from a fan who was at the game, for instance, has tallied over 40,000 views. troyfromwestvirgina’s YouTube offering, despite its eight-minute length, also appears a hit with 100,000 views of he and his kids watching the events unfold.
This unexpected attention – which will soon subside in the wake of tomorrow’s or next week’s viral moment – is MLB’s opportunity to step up and acknowledge some issues just as Joyce did. Instant replay reviews during games will certainly be back on the table, and maybe Commissioner Selig has some admissions about the “*” era he’d like to bring to closure once and for all. This is a moment to impress fans, respect the game, honor fair play and ethics, and if seized upon could bring more favorable attention back to the historic brand that is Major League Baseball.
Nice post, Ryan.
I’m astonished that Commissioner Selig was so quick to dismiss the idea of reversing the call and awarding Galarraga the perfect game. It’s a feat that seldom occurs and a call that was clearly missed. Joyce and Galarraga displayed class and professionalism.
This is definitely a huge disappointment for MLB. I’m still waiting for them to eradicate the home run records for McGwire and Bonds.