hstrop@mhuxt.UUCP (07/29/83)
As we all know by now, Lee MacPhail has upheld the Royals protest, stating it was "the fault of the official playing rules." This is the first time in ten years that MacPhail has upheld a protest. The game is currently declared a suspended contest, which means all the stats count, and if the game is ever finished, either the Royals or the Yankees could end up with the victory. However, the net predicted this outcome by a 2:1 margin. Out of 29(!) responses, 18 felt that the homerun should be allowed, 9 thought that Brett should be out, and two people had no direct opinion on the matter. Of the respondents, there are a lot of Yankee haters out there; at least 10 responses were very negative.(everyone's entitled to their opinion) I'm sure we haven't heard the last of this episode in baseball history. As a further note on the subject, why it is that baseball is the only professional sport that condones "cheating". For example, an umpire can see a player take off from third base before a fly ball is caught, but won't call the runner out unless there is an appeal play. The phantom 2nd base tag is another instance of "cheating" that goes on. Thanks for all the responses to the article. Play Ball! mhuxt!hstrop
dave@utcsrgv.UUCP (Dave Sherman) (08/02/83)
Baseball isn't the only sport that "condones cheating", to use
mhuxt!hstrop's words. Depending on whether you'd consider tournament
chess a "sport", which is is in many countries.
In tournament chess, if one player's clock has run out of
time, the other player must spot it and call him out of time. I don't
think this is "condoning cheating", and I don't think in baseball it's
"condoning cheating" either for the tag-up to have to be appealed. It
keeps you on your (mental) toes. In continuous-action sports, like
hockey, it obviously wouldn't be practical, but I don't see the problem
in baseball.
Dave Sherman, Toronto
--
{linus,cornell,watmath,ihnp4,floyd,allegra,utzoo,uw-beaver}!utcsrgv!dave