You Make the Call

I heard a new one this morning. MLB writer  Peter Gammons reported that umpire Angel Hernandez may have refused to overturn a decision in the Cleveland-Oakland baseball game (remember the HR by Adam Rosales that wasn't) because he doesn't believe instant replay has a place in baseball.

It seems to me that instead of protesting about the way things should be, Hernandez should pay attention to what is.

Whether it is Angel Hernandez in baseball, Joey Crawford in basketball, Ed Hochuli in the NFL or any of the hundreds involved in professional sports, officials have a difficult assignment. Often it is said that if officials are not part of the conversation in a game's broadcast then they are doing their jobs. A little harsh but true.

I have talked often with former official and supervisor of officials Colin Kapitan and visited with official Brad Coleman at the Summit League Basketball Championships. The commitment that men and women make to do this important segment in sports should never be questioned. They try to do the best they can. Sometimes doing their best means they will make a wrong decision.

It is easy for fans to call for their heads when decisions are wrong. But I think we know that some calls are going to be wrong. 90 percent of the calls are right so give credit where it is due. In full disclosure, I have yelled at my share of officials (sometimes loudly). Yet, for all of my anguish over some calls, I will be the first to agree that the human element has a place in the game.

But, Angel, come on, you were wrong and if you made the decision to "not overturn" a call because of your misgivings surrounding instant relay, then sir, you need a suspension to think about it.

Don't get me wrong, I believe officials need to have a seat at the table about rule interpretations, including handling instant replay. They have the right to hold their opinions and to speak out, just like us media types and fans. But, if they to do it under the cloak of a bad judgment, they are wrong and acting irresponsibly.

It seems to me the officiating at the professional level is getting worse by the season. I believe that NBA officiating may make more bad calls than baseball or the NFL, if that is possible. Take for example nine technical handed out in the Chicago/Miami blowout the other night. Two players (Joakim Noah and Taj Gibson, both of the Bulls) were sent to the showers early. Traveling is overlooked and phantom fouls are a real part of every game. A team with momentum gets one or two of these mystery calls during a course of a run. Major League Baseball is right there with the NBA. Twins fans remember the horrible call in the playoffs that robbed Joe Mauer of a hit. Tigers fans still have problems with Jim Joyce's wrong decision on Armando Gallaraga's perfect game when he missed an obvious call at first base. Those were a couple of years ago. How about, the misinterpretation of the rules in the Astros/Angels game, one night after the Cleveland/Oakland HR debacle. In that game, Houston manager Bo Porter was allowed to replace a pitcher who came into the game in relief but didn't deliver a pitch. No, the guy didn't have an injury. It was a clear violation as pointed out by Angels' manager Mike Sciocia. Then, the HR that wasn't in the Oakland/Cleveland game - any reasonable, objective view of that play required an overturn from a double to a HR. It seems every night we are seeing really bad calls, sometimes involving balls and strikes call at home plate. Several times early this season, teams were hurt by home plate umps make strike/ball calls that were horrendous..

I think we understand that in light of our information age gone nuts with smart phones and more, it makes it very difficult to officiate sports. When you break things down frame by frame, as we see on MLB TV, NFL Network. TBS, Fox Sports or whomever is carrying a game, it is easy to see why officiating is often held to an unreasonable standard. But, that is their job. Our officials know what is required and that is to interpret the rules objectively and when they see a miscall, they need to overturn it.

Yet, it seems to me that some of our officiating brethren are getting more arrogant and confrontational. They know they are on national TV and they don't want to be embarrassed. Sorry guys that comes with the officiating process. It should never be in the cards for the officials to call out a player or manager.

On the other hand, I do believe they need to stand firm on calls. They can't be intimidated into decisions.

All calls made in a game impact the bottom-line of a team, a franchise, a fan base one way or the other.

So, should MLB or the NFL or any of the professional sports overturn decisions and create a situation when the game will be replayed from a certain point? That is a tough call. But, something that needs to be considered as an option when atrocious calls and decisions are made and cost a team the opportunity to win a game.

The message from league offices can't simply be "the officials just made a bad judgment." That doesn't work but is the case time and again. Determinations on proper officiating and subsequent actions need to be held to a high standard. Lackadaisical or "let's not overreact because this is human judgment," should not the answers and surely can't be accepted by players, coaches fan bases and media.

I have heard the word "accountability" a lot lately. I keep wondering if the leaders in the respective sport under that that means. 

I think we all know that a little common sense and unbiased observation will lead us down the right path. When there are grotesque decisions, then the league's in the respective sports need to step up and provide some form of penalty on the officials. It appears we are seeing more of that lately. I think it is coming down to competence as Danny Knobler of CBS Sports writes: http://www.cbssports.com/mlb/blog/danny-knobler/22225809/mlbs-umpiring-problem-is-an-issue-of-competence-and-credibility

My answer is that officials on the field should not be making an overruling judgment. I believe that the organizations ruling the professional sports need to put into place a non-partisan crew whose sole job is to evaluate decisions on the field or court when necessary. No, not every call can be changed. We have to accept that some judgment calls are bang, bang plays and how someone views a play should never depends on a team's colors or time or game situation.

Regardless, it is time to take some serious action. Accountability shouldn't be a word that is hard to interpret in officiating athletics. Here is the definition: "The obligation of an individual or organization to account for its activities, accept responsibility for them, and to disclose the results in a transparent manner."

All eyes, especially among fans and media, are fixed on your decision on how to fix this officiating mess. I think the game's integrity hinges on that determination. Placing accountability on officials for their actions makes them responsible and ensures that competence is a defining characteristic for those in the black and white.

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