Fair or foul? Too close to call from this camera angle.
For the second game in a row on the same day, the Cardinals bullpen took a close game and gave it away to Chicago. Seth Maness got ejected in the seventh inning after giving up a run scoring single and Kevin Siegrist threw a potential double play ball into centerfield allowing the go-ahead run to score as the Cubs swept the Cardinals with a 5-3 win in the night cap of the double header.
Addison Russell hit a ground ball down the first base that bounced twice before passing the bag and then landing foul behind first base. It’s the umpire’s judgement to determine if the ball crosses over the base while in the air. The first bounce off the bat of Russell was obviously foul. From the camera angle, it’s difficult to determine if the ball cues a bit to the left and touches the foul line. After the ball passes by or over the base, it clearly lands foul, but that’s not the determining location. Tough call against the Cardinals as it allowed the tying run to score in the seventh.
“I saw it hit two feet foul right in the dirt,” Maness said. “Then I saw it hit foul again. I’m really no physics major, but I don’t know how it hits foul and curves back, but it could.”
Maness got kicked out of the game and after the loss, first baseman Mark Reynolds shared his frustrations
“I thought it was [uncalled for],” Reynolds said. “He didn’t say anything to get thrown out. I think the guy just overreacted in the heat of the moment. He’s probably not used to people questioning him. You know, I just thought the call was bad and the call to throw him out was terrible.”
Watch the decisive play right here. (video/MLB)
After the ejection, Kevin Siegrist was called upon and induced a ground ball right back to him with runners on first and third and one out. The right play to make is to turn the double play, but Siegrist fired the ball way left of the bag into center field allowing the go-ahead run to score. If Siegrist executes, the inning should end with the score tied.
Watch the error. (video/MLB)
The Cubs tacked on another run in the seventh, and added insurance in the eighth. Jason Motte saved his second game of the day, despite giving up a run on three hits in the ninth.
I doubt replay would have overturned the call, but why wasn’t replay used? By rule, any fair/foul call involving a ball that first lands in front of the umpire is not reviewable.
