Say something controversial

[michigancat]

Instant replay should not be used to overturn calls in sports. Just accept that officials will make mistakes and keep the game moving.


(Not exactly controversial among European soccer fans, but might be controversial here)

I agree in baseball and basketball. I'm ok with it in football.

why is it different in football?

[Rage Against the McKee]

Baseball replay is the worst.

[BIG APPLE CAT]

Instant replay should not be used to overturn calls in sports. Just accept that officials will make mistakes and keep the game moving.


(Not exactly controversial among European soccer fans, but might be controversial here)

I agree in baseball and basketball. I'm ok with it in football.

that's interesting considering how instant replay has revealed how frequently umps get the calls wrong in real time. like an embarrassing amount. In general i have been really impressed with football refs like so many times even when you slow it down to as slow as possible its still like, impossible to tell for sure, and those guys are making those calls in real time. very impressive stuff.

In football dynamic plays happen all over the field and in some cases its just not really possible to have a definitive camera angle for every play, the cameraguy just has to get lucky. In baseball, the plays that require instant replay are really only at a few specific locations and they can (and do!) have the cameras positioned such that they can almost always get a definitive view of the play and make the correct call in a relatively short amount of time.

[Cartierfor3]

Instant replay should not be used to overturn calls in sports. Just accept that officials will make mistakes and keep the game moving.


(Not exactly controversial among European soccer fans, but might be controversial here)

I agree in baseball and basketball. I'm ok with it in football.

why is it different in football?

Mostly because with baseball there are so many games, no one play should disrupt an already slow game for replay review. With basketball the flow of the game absolutely dies already at the end with free throws and whatnot, slowing down to review out of bounds drags it even further.

Football stops between every play already, and with so few games each play is more important to get right. JMHO

[Rage Against the McKee]

The problem with baseball replay is that it seems like it is mostly used to call people out sliding into second, just because their body bounced off the bag for a microsecond after easily beating the tag. If the out isn't visible to the human eye without zooming into the base and going to slo mo, I'd rather he be called safe.

[Cartierfor3]

The problem with baseball replay is that it seems like it is mostly used to call people out sliding into second, just because their body bounced off the bag for a microsecond after easily beating the tag. If the out isn't visible to the human eye without zooming into the base and going to slo mo, I'd rather he be called safe.

yes. it's so stupid.

[BIG APPLE CAT]

The problem with baseball replay is that it seems like it is mostly used to call people out sliding into second, just because their body bounced off the bag for a microsecond after easily beating the tag. If the out isn't visible to the human eye without zooming into the base and going to slo mo, I'd rather he be called safe.

i would agree that a guy coming off the bag for like a microsecond is antithetical to the spirit of the game and should not be eligible for replay review, they should only be allowed to evaluate whether or not the tag happened before the runner reached the base or not. but i mean...first and third with 1 out is a very different scenario than man on 3rd with 2 outs and quite frankly, that sort of scenario would happen all the time because of how frequently first base umps get the out at first call incorrect.

For that matter, i really see absolutely no reason why they don't have robots calling balls and strikes. Other than some of you dorks going "harumph harumph i'm a traditionalist" there is absolutely no value in having something so objectively quantifiable be left to a guy wearing a protective mask whose only vantage point doesn't even let him see the entirety of the pitch. If they had the technology for it back when baseball was conceived i'm quite sure they would have used it. You can still have a home plate ump for keeping the peace, calling safe/out on plays at the plate, granting timeout, and whatever other duties the home plate ump has aside from calling balls and strikes

[BIG APPLE CAT]

like my god, imagine a kicker kicking a game winning field goal that just managed to stay inside the upright but the ref was accidentally blinking or got a bug in his eye at that moment and he was like "huh, well, i didn't see it clearly but i assume it missed"

that's essentially what you're saying you want for balls and strikes. there is no need for subjective interpretation.

[Cartierfor3]

well, i'm just not ready to sacrifice all of life to technology.

[Spracne]

Agree re: robot umps for balls and strikes. Still gonna need humans for things like swings and bunt timing.

[Cartierfor3]

CONTROVERSIAL: most in game atmospheres at sporting events would be better with less piped in jock jams

[BIG APPLE CAT]

not to mention, major league baseball pitchers are such finely tuned athletes that they are able to place a pitch with surgical like precision. Like dang, you'd think the ability to throw it at the knees on the black would be an asset but ope, home plate ump is calling that a ball on the right side of the plate but on the left side you can throw that thing 3" off the plate and he'll call it a strike. Better get all your right handed sluggers out of the lineup b/c its impossible for them to cover anything that far outside the plate. A manager should not have to tune his lineup based on the whims of the umpire's strike zone that day. man i'm on a heater rn you guys are so dumb. someone please give me one good reason to have humans calling balls and strikes other than "that's just the way it always has been" 

[michigancat]

Seems like balls and strikes could be completely automated, which I wouldn't be opposed to

[BIG APPLE CAT]

Agree re: robot umps for balls and strikes. Still gonna need humans for things like swings and bunt timing.

YES! perfectly fine with human subjectivity for whether or not he offered at the pitch. great example of why to still have home plate ump. just relieve him of the balls/strikes duties.

[Cartierfor3]

i am comfuzzled at not wanting replay but wanting robot umps

[mocat]

CONTROVERSIAL: most in game atmospheres at sporting events would be better with less piped in jock jams

yeah, just remind us in a slow dramatic voice whenever it's third down and we'll take care of the rest

[BIG APPLE CAT]

like i just said, i think replay is fine, i just think there are aspects of it that are antithetical to the game. to wit: calling a guy out b/c his foot ever so slightly came off the bag for a fraction of a second even though he beat the throw. Let replay review whether or not he beat the tag, but not whether there was a microsecond time gap where he wasn't touching the bag b/c his foot bounced off slightly. but i cannot fathom why you wouldn't want the call to be correct on whether or not a guy is out at first. because in case you haven't been paying attention...umpires get that crap wrong all the time.

[Trim]

Eddie Vedder’s fight with Ticketmaster.

[BIG APPLE CAT]

CONTROVERSIAL: most in game atmospheres at sporting events would be better with less piped in jock jams

yeah, just remind us in a slow dramatic voice whenever it's third down and we'll take care of the rest

this is an incredibly not controversial take but NARCOS has been abused in football and basketball games

[BIG APPLE CAT]

in the entire 140 year history of MLB there have been twenty-three (23) perfect games pitched. Armando Galarraga would have been the 24th if not for a blown out at first call by the first base umpire for what would have been the 27th and final out of the game. A call that, with instant replay, was so blatantly obvious that the guy was out. in less than 10 seconds they would have overturned that call and baseball would have seen its 24th perfect game. But yeah, instant replay is dumb b/c i'm "old fashioned like that" 

[michigancat]

i am comfuzzled at not wanting replay but wanting robot umps

Robot umpires won't bring the game to a grinding halt because the call would be instant. Out of bounds is automated in big tennis tournaments and it's great.

[TheHamburglar]

CONTROVERSIAL: most in game atmospheres at sporting events would be better with less piped in jock jams

I think this is part of why I stopped casually watching NBA games. The constant organs, music clips & sound affects coming through during gameplay were annoying. I would be driven insane in the arena.

[michigancat]

in the entire 140 year history of MLB there have been twenty-three (23) perfect games pitched. Armando Galarraga would have been the 24th if not for a blown out at first call by the first base umpire for what would have been the 27th and final out of the game. A call that, with instant replay, was so blatantly obvious that the guy was out. in less than 10 seconds they would have overturned that call and baseball would have seen its 24th perfect game. But yeah, instant replay is dumb b/c i'm "old fashioned like that"

I bet at least one of the other 23 had a bad call in the favor of the pitcher. It happens and balances out over time, big deal.

[TheHamburglar]

in the entire 140 year history of MLB there have been twenty-three (23) perfect games pitched. Armando Galarraga would have been the 24th if not for a blown out at first call by the first base umpire for what would have been the 27th and final out of the game. A call that, with instant replay, was so blatantly obvious that the guy was out. in less than 10 seconds they would have overturned that call and baseball would have seen its 24th perfect game. But yeah, instant replay is dumb b/c i'm "old fashioned like that"

I bet at least one of the other 23 had a bad call in the favor of the pitcher. It happens and balances out over time, big deal.

*Looks at the 1985 World Series flag*

*Slowly backs away*

[BIG APPLE CAT]

in the entire 140 year history of MLB there have been twenty-three (23) perfect games pitched. Armando Galarraga would have been the 24th if not for a blown out at first call by the first base umpire for what would have been the 27th and final out of the game. A call that, with instant replay, was so blatantly obvious that the guy was out. in less than 10 seconds they would have overturned that call and baseball would have seen its 24th perfect game. But yeah, instant replay is dumb b/c i'm "old fashioned like that"

I bet at least one of the other 23 had a bad call in the favor of the pitcher. It happens and balances out over time, big deal.

honestly i haven't watched the entire game so i have no idea if he benefited from any bad calls. But i mean, when its literally the (would be) last play of the game, its a bit more pronounced.