Adam Jones’ stolen stolen base is another reminder of flawed review system

The stolen stolen base

The reversal of Adam Jones’ stolen base in the eighth inning of Wednesday night’s game against the Reds was an all-too-typical example of MLB’s ridiculous process of reviewing umpire calls. We’ve been told that to reverse a call, there much be clear and convincing evidence that the on-field call was incorrect.

So, after watching replay after replay not showing evidence that Jones was out, interspersed with “action” shots of stationary, muted umpires wearing headphones and staring into space for more than three minutes, Jones was sent to the dugout.

Fortunately, this bad call didn’t hurt the Orioles from winning 2-0, but it certainly could have.

By the way, what happened to the new two-minute limit this year to determine review results? That was one of the few rule changes agreed upon to speed up the game, which seems to be of the utmost importance to many including Commissioner Rob Manfred.

Good news coming?

According to the Associated Press, while no agreement has been reached, Major League Baseball is considering equipping crew chiefs with microphones so they can actually explain why calls are reversed or not.

Well … yeah, of course. It’s about time umps are made to tell fans at the ballgames and those watching at home the reasoning the all mighty judges in New York use when wasting our time.

The word is they could start the process for the first time at the All-Star Game and then continue it throughout the second half of the season and the playoffs.

The almost home run

Did anyone check the replay of Adam Jones’ third inning foul ball in Tuesday’s game against the Reds? I thought for sure it was a bad call, and it should have been a home run. I had to study the replay several times to finally see that it was indeed the correct call. Can you see the white blur go to the left of the yellow fair pole?