US Victory Over Japan

[aarond23]

I am happy for Japan that now the bad call won't haunt them forever.

Korea/Japan 3 should be a classic.

[DownUnderDodger]

I cannot comment about the call against Japan as I have not seen the play, however it was mentioned in the game today when the same umpire ruled against Mexico when a drive clearly hit the foul pole, but was ruled to have hit the fence, robbing the Mexicans of a home run. Justice was duly served when the batter scored anyway! There is always going to be the call of "hometown decision" whatever sport is played when incidents like this occur.

[SHOELESSJOE3]

I always find it funny when a guy gets a hit and then gets picked off first. The next batter hits a home run. The play by play and the color guy say, "If he didn't get picked off first, it would have been a two run homer." No, things would be different. Just because the batter hit the dinger, after the pick off, doesn't mean he would if the runner remained on first. Same thing here.
.

This is true, can't believe how many times we hear what I believe to be broadcasters of a game to have some knowledge of the game say... if this or that didn't happen. I watched one game where the hitter hit into a double play and the very next batter hit a home run. Guess what, they said it again, how important that DP was, cleaned of the bases before that home run, thats what they said. I think common sense would tell us that the batter that hit the home run would have been pitched to differently with one or both runners on base.

Getting back to that blown call, it didn't even look close enough to go the other way, clearly the runner never left the base before the catch, but these things do happen.

[Rennie Stennett]

Come on Blue !

Wah! Wah! It's a conspiracy that the umpires followed the rules! Wah! Wah! It's a conspiracy that the Japanese blew easy plays in the bottom of the 9th to allow the bases to get loaded! Wah! Wah!

I always find it funny when a guy gets a hit and then gets picked off first. The next batter hits a home run. The play by play and the color guy say, "If he didn't get picked off first, it would have been a two run homer." No, things would be different. Just because the batter hit the dinger, after the pick off, doesn't mean he would if the runner remained on first. Same thing here.

We will never know, if the Umps didn't blow the call and the Japanese had the lead, how the rest of the game would turn out.

IF the Japanese did their homework (scouting) and I'm sure they did, they would know that Randy Wynn has no arm, so there would be no need to leave early, even on a shallow fly ball to left.

I think what bothered many people is that he was called safe, and only after Buck talked to the home plate Ump, was the guy then rung up.

If you watched the whole game, then maybe you can offer something to the discussion.

[SHOELESSJOE3]

What is it with USA sports nowadays? USA basketball is an embarrassment, and now we need a really embarrassing, wrong, blown call and two cracks with the bases loaded in the bottom of the ninth to pull out a 1 run win over Japan? This coming off a blowout loss to CANADA? We load up these rosters with stars and yet we have to scratch and claw to be competitive. Better rethink that stupid "The _____ are the WORLD CHAMPIONS!!!" line the media always loves to saturate our minds with.

Remember this is a mixture of players, some American players playing for their own countries not the USA teams that they are members of.

As for your closing statement, if I understsand that you believe we claim to be the best but it does not appear so, who would you put your money on if the best team from the USA played a team from another country. I'm talking the World Series champ against another country with no American players on that team.

Lets not confuse a group of American ball players who were willing to play with a World Series winning team. Some of our best are in spring training.

[efin98]

It's not really a matter of whether Davidson blew the call; that much is obvious. What I find interesting is how the media is reacting (at least in the US; I don't have access to international media). The reaction has generally been indifference with a few exceptions.

There's a reason for that- it's not much of a story. The big story was what happened after the incident. Japan couldn't get it done in the top of the 9th and blew the game in the bottom of the 9th. The game should have gone to extra innings, with the US looking somewhat tired in the 9th. Japan could have taken back that run and inflicted more damage as the heart of their order was coming up, but they didn't. They blew the game in the 9th. That's the story, not the umpire.

[iPod]

What is it with USA sports nowadays? USA basketball is an embarrassment, and now we need a really embarrassing, wrong, blown call and two cracks with the bases loaded in the bottom of the ninth to pull out a 1 run win over Japan? This coming off a blowout loss to CANADA? We load up these rosters with stars and yet we have to scratch and claw to be competitive. Better rethink that stupid "The _____ are the WORLD CHAMPIONS!!!" line the media always loves to saturate our minds with.

[SHOELESSJOE3]

[QUOTE=king_ghidora]It's not really a matter of whether Davidson blew the call; that much is obvious. What I find interesting is how the media is reacting (at least in the US; I don't have access to international media). The reaction has generally been indifference with a few exceptions.

QUOTE]

Can't speak for the media but the two Americans broadcasting that game on TV immediately after the play and after the game pointed out that they thought the ump did miss tha call, the runner should not have been called out.

[king_ghidora]

It's not really a matter of whether Davidson blew the call; that much is obvious. What I find interesting is how the media is reacting (at least in the US; I don't have access to international media). The reaction has generally been indifference with a few exceptions.

Wah! Wah! It's a conspiracy that the umpires followed the rules! Wah! Wah! It's a conspiracy that the Japanese blew easy plays in the bottom of the 9th to allow the bases to get loaded! Wah! Wah!

Yeah, the same thing would have happened in Japan- the same damn umpires were in use! They follow the same rules as every other tournament being held world wide with the exception of the pitch counts. But why look at actual facts when IT'S A MASSIVE WORLDWIDE CONSPIRACY! Wah! Wah!

I question whether all of these armchair umpires actually WATCHED the game and HEARD the explanation of the situation- it was specifically pointed out multiple times in the bottom of the 8th and the 9th innings what the rules were and why it had occured.

But why actually watch the game why it's so much easier to complain about it

Although, if we want to discuss like second-graders, we can do that too.

[BigStellyPADRES4LIFE]

Ive always known Bob Davidson to be an umpire who makes bad calls, ..... the thing that bugs me the most about him is his strike zone. I dont mind if an umpire wants to call the outside corner, but when he does so selectively he is a horrible umpire and really should find another job.

Having said this, yeah he blew that call and im not suprised.

[efin98]

Wah! Wah! It's a conspiracy that the umpires followed the rules! Wah! Wah! It's a conspiracy that the Japanese blew easy plays in the bottom of the 9th to allow the bases to get loaded! Wah! Wah!

Yeah, the same thing would have happened in Japan- the same damn umpires were in use! They follow the same rules as every other tournament being held world wide with the exception of the pitch counts. But why look at actual facts when IT'S A MASSIVE WORLDWIDE CONSPIRACY! Wah! Wah!

I question whether all of these armchair umpires actually WATCHED the game and HEARD the explanation of the situation- it was specifically pointed out multiple times in the bottom of the 8th and the 9th innings what the rules were and why it had occured.

But why actually watch the game why it's so much easier to complain about it

[lautrec]

BUT--

If this same situation had happened on Japanese soil with a Japanese umpire against the American team, don't you think fans and commentators in the US would be screaming Conspiracy and Nepotism?[/QUOTE]

Absolutely. At least the talking (screaming and whining) heads, such as almost everyone on ESPN, the stupid idiots (excluding Dibble) on Best Damn Sports show, Jim Rome, Bob Costas, etc., any of the sensationalist radio programs like Cowherd, Mike and Mike, Tony Bruno, all those stupid morons.... Yes, they would have been BASHING a japanese call like that,BIG TIME. The fact is, those shows, which unfortunately constitute the majority of sports shows out there thrive on crap like that, and that's what they force feed us.

Sports, when left in the hands of non-athletes, or has been athletes, seem to become nothing more than one big silly Jerry Springer pile of steaming dung. And, apparently, we the salivating public, want it.

I can listen to XM Radio, Home Plate 175, because they aren't sensationalist monkeys, craving attention for themselves, instead of focusing on the game.

XM 175 dealt with that issue, the blown call, and presented it professionally, and without the huge bruhaha as the other nutjobs on ESPN, FOX, ABC sports, etc.

Baseball has no instant replay, and the ump just blew the call. It happens. The US has been on the other end of those types of calls over the years, and we've managed to live through it.

This is just like any other "bad" thing that happens in baseball,,they "look at me" announcers will parlay this into absolutely anything they can to get face time.

[SHOELESSJOE3]

We all know that the (American) umpire blew the call and screwed the Japanese team when he overturned the 2nd base umpire's call in the 8th inning that preserved the tie score. The video evidence is concrete -- the runner on third didn't leave the base until the ball was in Winn's glove.

Now I'm not saying that the umpire overturned the call against the Japanese just because he's American. I'm not saying that the umpire overturned the call just because the American manager persuaded him.

BUT--

If this same situation had happened on Japanese soil with a Japanese umpire against the American team, don't you think fans and commentators in the US would be screaming Conspiracy and Nepotism?

No idea what that ump was looking at. From what I saw, what I believe that runner did not leave the base before the ball was caught, should have been safe.

[king_ghidora]

We all know that the (American) umpire blew the call and screwed the Japanese team when he overturned the 2nd base umpire's call in the 8th inning that preserved the tie score. The video evidence is concrete -- the runner on third didn't leave the base until the ball was in Winn's glove.

Now I'm not saying that the umpire overturned the call against the Japanese just because he's American. I'm not saying that the umpire overturned the call just because the American manager persuaded him.

BUT--

If this same situation had happened on Japanese soil with a Japanese umpire against the American team, don't you think fans and commentators in the US would be screaming Conspiracy and Nepotism?