Do you think Instant replay in baseball is a bad idea?

Question

The Cubs today will start using at Wrigley and i think Oakland will to.

Answer 1

I know that baseball is not the same as football.  And football has instituted a time limit on its replays.  But I worry about the continuity of the game.  Taking time out hopefully doesnt mean an extended amount of time.  The one positive though is getting the thing right.  I guess that  is what matters the most.   So I would say I am all for getting the calls right

Answer 2

If they keep it like it is, then it is not a bad idea.  The way some stadiums are built now, it is difficult to tell whether or not a ball is a homerun.  It will be very rarely used, as how often do you see a disputed boundary call?

Answer 3

If they keep it for home runs and maybe start to include those really close calls on the bases (especially 2nd base where most of the mistakes are made) then I'm all for it. If they start bringing it in for balls and strikes then that's taking it way too far. I don't think they'll do that though, even though the home plate umpires really seem to suck this year.

Answer 4

Its better than having blown calls that change the outcome of games in the last month of a playoff race.  

Answer 5

I'm not sure.  I get that they wanna use it to prevent botched home run calls that could sway a game.  But home runs aren't the only thing that can s***w it up.  Next thing you know, it'll evolve into fair/foul calls for the baselines, and replays on attempted steals and everything else you could think of.

It'll slow the game way down, as if baseball games aren't long enough as it is.

Answer 6

yes becuz it could evolve into rep;ay and machines calling strikes and balls and outs and not just homre run...fair or foul...or fan interference... mistakes by the umps are and always have been a part of the game and it should stay that way

Answer 7

It would be good for home run calls, disputed home run calls don't happen all the time.  It won't disrupt the game as long as they don't start using it for balls and strikes.

Answer 8

I think if there are only limited chances for instant replay like in Tennis. It should not affect the continuity of the game. Which is taking longer, Bobby Cox arguing the call until he got throw out or we see replay and the video shut them up?

But if there are unlimited challenges and managers can just use them for fun, then that is not a good idea.

Or if you count managers or players got throw out the game is a fun part, then the replays will massively reduce that amount.

Answer 9

what makes baseball a great game are the arguments, the mistakes and everything else, putting replay we wont have ozzie guillen arguing about a call or lou piniella arguing replay takes the love and the excitement of the game

Answer 10

Yes, Umpire error is part of the game, it is like giving a 16 year old the keys to a car and telling him to only go 20mph, it will get bigger and evolve

Answer 11

Its not a bad idea at all. I don't get this "human error is part of the game" comment. Do you want the right calls or not? What if your favorite team hit what was called a foul ball but really should have been a home run that would win a game? Or clinch a playoff berth? Or a playoff series? Or a World Series? I am sure you would be wishing they had instant replay.

Umpires are too far from the walls sometimes and can lead to blown calls. This is why they should HAVE instant replay. And about "slowing down the game," this would probably take no longer then having one manager come out, arguing, umpires huddling, changing the call, the other manager coming out and arguing, and someone eventually getting ejected. It would probably take less then 3 minutes to look at a simple replay rather than have multiple arguments and possibly ejections.

I am for it, but only for home run and fair/foul calls.

Answer 12

I agree with DA.  Bad idea.  Could open an ugly can of worms

Answer 13

I have yet to understand why some people insist on saying that "human error" is simply a part of the game. That is fine when you are talking about things that can't be changed - a hitter striking out with the bases loaded, a foelder losing a pop-up in the sun, etc., but not on something as important as whether a ball is a home run or not. In any business, the idea is to be perfect. This is why there are quality control people, this is why a waitress tries to get your food to the table while it's still hot, and this is why your package of underwear will have a tag that says "inspected by #12" in it. There is nothing at all wrong with getting a call like this right. While I agree that replay should never be used to the extent that it is in the NFL (I don't like the whole appeal process thy use), there is no reason to assume that the rule as MLB has stated it will "evolve" in any way. The rule they have is not at all similar to the NFL replay rule, it will be much more like the replay rule that the NHL uses to determine goals. And the NHL rule has not been expanded in any way to determine penalties, offsides, etc.

You will never totally remove the umpires from the game. But why should any fan or player be forced to live with a bad call on something that is usually so easy to see on a replay? Why should umpires not be allowed to use replay as a "quality control" device in the same way that people in other professions do? People make mistakes all the time in their jobs - that is why an assembly line will have controls in place to weigh a product, or may have people pulling a food product off th eline for a taste test - that is why people use calculators and computers for financial transactions rather then a pencil and paper, and that is why computers have spell check. Give the umps every tool possible to make sure that they can get the call right in this case.

Relax folks - it's not going to be that big a deal. It's not going to make a game last 5 hours, it's not going to lead to having every single close call looked at, and it certainly will never lead to simple calls, such as balls and strikes, being made by a machine.

Answer 14

No, I like the concept to use it simply for boundary calls. Its use in games will be rare. I just wish they waited till the start of '09 to start using it...