Of course there are going to be freak plays like that one where you can’t see… he was in the right position, which happened to put him OUT of position for THAT particular play.. Of course mitch and ricky bo are going to say that because he butchered the call.. but it was because of where Howard caught the ball that he missed it, not because he wasn’t in the right spot

So, if all that happens, you know that will lock him up the MVP.

that was a freak play, if Howard stretches out towards Moyer, its not as bang-bang.. and the umpire would have seen it..

BUT.. that is baseball.. if they go to instant replay there. it would only be a matter of time before people want managers to have challenge flags a few times a game for ball-strike calls..

I guarantee you nobody feels as bad about that call as Hallion himself. MLB front office reviews umpiring with the crew, and the crew chief reviews the game with the rest of the crew. Hallion knows full well he blew it. And there but for the grace of god, he could have joined Don Denkinger in the hall of shame for the blown call at first in the 85 WS. There was a special on that call on ESPN, and that umpire still gets hate mail to this day from Cardinal fans.

I fear baseball is going in the wrong direction with instant replay. As soon as baseball dips a toe in those waters it won’t be long before we find ourselves alll the way in the pool with electronic strike zones and infra-red motion detectors in fences and foul poles, etc., just like professional tennis. That’s not a game I want to watch.

Close bang-bang calls will sometimes go for you and sometimes against, but over the longer haul they will even out. Championship teams will shrug these things off and go get the run back. That’s what the Phils did last night, and that’s why I believe the Phils will win this in the end. And if that happens, nobody will be more relieved than Hallion.

1. Did not know that, what a class act.

2. Agree about the enlarged strike zone benefiting both pitchers, and that Garza and Navarro didn’t take advantage like Ruiz and Jamie did. But if it’s a tight strike zone, and assuming that Moyer NEEDS that expanded zone, then maybe Moyer doesn’t shut down the Rays’ offense as well as he did. But you’re right, there’s something to be said about being able to take advantage when the opportunity is presented, as opposed to not taking advantage.

3. A blown call does not help both teams, I agree. But the way I was looking at it was, let’s say that before the game starts, you’re given a choice between:

A) a blown call that would cost you two runs plus an enlarged strike zone that would help your pitcher more than the other guy

B) no blown calls, but the home plate guy is gonna call the strike zone exactly as it should be called

You could even argue that Brett Myers was even better in game 2 because he had to deal with a home plate ump whose strike zone was very inconsistent, and he went longer and gave up the same amount of earned runs as Moyer.

Just trying to explain myself, not really looking to get into an argument about this, I’m happy as hell about the win last night, just like you.

NEPA…..I echo you’re plea to Ryan……..RYAN, STAY HOME!!! (Seriously, Ryan if you go, please at least act differently, sit differently….do a bunch of things differently to change your bad luck!!!)

Why is it that FOX needs to remind the viewers every 2 minutes how futile the Phillies hitters have been with RISP in these 3 games? Yet, they praise the Rays for their wonderful ability to manufacture runs via ground out or sac fly (combined with fortunate calls from the umpires)?

By my count, the Rays have hit about 5 balls real hard the whole series. They’re not exactly the ’27 Yankees.

Comparing the position players of each team after 3 games:

C – Ruiz and Navarro each made costly throwing errors in last nigfht’s game. Navarro’s was devastating. Ruiz has clearly out-performed Navarro so far.

1B – Howard has struggled mightily with RISP, but he’s hit the ball hard the last 2 games. Pena has played good D but no offense. Edge to Howard.

2B – Iwamura had 3 hits and an RBI in game 1 (which the Rays lost); has done nothing since. Utley has 2 HRs and 3 RBIs in both wins for the Phils. Edge to Howard.

SS – Rollins really struggled in St. Petersburg, but collected 2 hits last night. Bartlett has 2 hits, 2 RBIs and has played good D. Edge to Barlett.

3B – The great Evan Longoria has done zilch in these 3 games and his defense is suspect. Feliz has 2 hits and always plays great D. Edge to Feliz.

LF – Burrell has done nothing. Crawford Has two hits – a HR in game 1 off Hamels and that fortuitous bunt single in the 7th last night. Edge to Crawford.

CF – Upton and Victorino each have 4 hits in the 3 games. Both have played well defensively. Although Upton has more steals he also came up tiny in game 1. I would call this one a draw.

RF – Zorbrist, Baldelli and Gross have a combined 1 hits between them, while Werth has 4 (including 2 doubles). However, Werth made a key fielding error in game 2 and 2 bad base-running mistakes in games 2 & 3. Despite those muscues you gotta give the edge to Werth because the Rays need more than 1 hit from their rightfielders in 3 games.

DH – Combined, each team’s DH has one hit to show for the 3 games. Coste and Dobbs came up real tiny in games 1 & 2, especially Dobbs. By default the edge goes to the Rays.

Starting Pitchers – Their really hasn’t been a SP who’s been truly roughed-up in this series so far. And although the Phils had plenty of opportunities agisnt James (big game) Shields in game 2, he gets credit for keeping them in check. Hamels out-duled Kazmir; Shields did a little better than Myers; but Moyer out-performed Garza last night. Edge to Phillies.

Bullpen – Although FOX is already campaigning for money for the construction project to build a separate wing in the Hall of Fame for the annointed David Price of the Rays, I’m not THAT impressed. Balfour and Howell have pitched well for them too. But the Phillies’ Bullpen has been stellar by comparison.

Is it me, or does Tim McCarver make a bigger deal out of Howard’s slump as compared to Longoria’s? Yeah, Howard has left a ton of men on base – especially with a runner on 3B and less than 2 outs – but Evan The Great has done nothing at all offensively. Yet FOX keeps reminding us of his 6 post season HRs. That’s old news, FOX. Besides, Howard has been seeing and hitting the ball better the last 2 games.

HRs by team – Rays (1 – Crawford); Phils (5 – Utley (2), Howard, Bruntlett, Ruiz)

Interesting, poignant stat that FOX showed late in last night’s game. In 27 innings, the Rays’ pitchers have retired the Phillies’ hitters in order only FOUR times so far.

I am real happy for Carlos Ruiz. It’s easy to see that every member of the Phillies loves this guy, and his defense is underrated. He never shows up the umpire and never hangs his head. And di you notice his HR last night, he knew it was gone when he hit it but just dropped the bat, lowered his head and RAN around the bases. Class guy. Glad to see “Chooch” succeed in the national spotlight.

I’m going to the game today – hopefully I can break my personal Phillies curse. Whenever I go to a game, they always lose. I can feel that streak breaking tonight.

LET’S GO PHILLIES!!!