In the words of former American League umpire Nestor Chylak, umpires are expected to "be perfect on the first day of the season and then get better every day." Forced to deal with sullen managers and explosive players, they often take the blame for the failures of both. But let's face it--umpires are only human.
For well over a century, the fortunes of Major League teams--and the fabric of baseball history itself--have been dramatically affected by the flawed decisions of officials. While the use of video replay in recent decades has reduced the number of bitter disputes, many situations remain exempt from review and are subject to swirling controversy. In the heat of the moment mistakes are often made, sometimes with monumental consequences.
In the words of former American League umpire Nestor Chylak, umpires are expected to "be perfect on the first day of the season and then get better every day." Forced to deal with sullen managers and explosive players, they often take the blame for the failures of both. But let's face it--umpires are only human.
For well over a century, the fortunes of Major League teams--and the fabric of baseball history itself--have been dramatically affected by the flawed decisions of officials. While the use of video replay in recent decades has reduced the number of bitter disputes, many situations remain exempt from review and are subject to swirling controversy. In the heat of the moment mistakes are often made, sometimes with monumental consequences.
Table of Contents
Preface
Introduction. The Devil We Know: A Very Brief History of
Umpiring
Part One. The Umpire Giveth, the Umpire Taketh Away:
deleteStreaks and Records Helped or Hindered by Umpires
• Johnny Vander Meer’s Consecutive No-Hitters
• Joe DiMaggio’s 56-Game Hitting Streak
• Don Larsen’s Perfect World Series Game
• Bob Shaw’s Balk-a-Thon
• Don Drysdale’s Consecutive Scoreless Innings Streak
• Orel Hershiser’s Consecutive Scoreless Innings Streak
• The 1998 Home Run Chase (Featuring Mark McGwire and Sammy
Sosa)
• Kerry Wood’s 20-Strikeout Performance
• Armando Galarraga’s Near-Perfect Game
• Max Scherzer’s Near-Perfect Game
Part Two. The Road to October: Critical Calls During
deletethe Regular Season
• Bob Ferguson’s Campaign Against Gambling
• Tim Hurst and the Beer Glass Incident
• Soggy Games in Pittsburgh: Round 1
• Soggy Games in Pittsburgh: Round 2
• Fred Merkle’s Infamous Blunder
• Stuffy McInnis’s Gift Homer
• Germany Schaefer Steals First Base
• Bill Brennan Imposes His Iron Will
• The Indecision of Charles Johnston
• Red Jones’s Fourteen Ejections
• Two Balls in Play at Wrigley Field
• Don Money’s Nullified Grand Slam
• The Pine Tar Game
• Wild Card Tiebreaker Game
• Bill Hohn’s Fist Bump
• 19-Inning Marathon Ended by Jerry Meals’s Blown Call
Part Three. The Victors and the Spoils: Playoff Controversies
• The Jeffrey Maier Game
• Livan Hernandez’s 15-Strikeout Performance
• The 1998 ALCS Disaster
• 1999 ALCS: The Phantom Tag and Other Issues
• Pierzynski and the Uncaught Third Strike
• Midges Invade Jacob’s Field
• 2009 Playoffs: The Fall Guys
• 2010 Playoffs: Bad Calls in Multiple Rounds
• 2012 NL Wild Card Game: Improperly Invoked Infield Fly Rule
• 2015 ALCS Game 6: A Wet, Wild Finish in Kansas City
• 2016 NLCS Game 4: Angel Hernandez’s Blown Call at Home Plate
• 2017 NLDS Game 5: Nationals Lose on Account of Jerry Layne’s
Mistakes
Part Four: Legends of the Fall: Infamous World Series
deleteDebates
• 1885 World’s Championship Series: Umpire David Sullivan’s Hot
Mess
• 1911 World Series Game 5: The Run That Shouldn’t Have
delete deleteCounted
• 1925 World Series Game 3: Sam Rice’s Mystery Catch
• 1935 World Series Game 3: Moriarty Defies Landis with 3
Ejections
• 1948 World Series Game 1: Bill Stewart’s Blown Pickoff Call on
Phil Masi
• 1955 World Series Game 1: Jackie Robinson Steals Home
• 1969 World Series Game 5: The Old Shoe Polish Trick
• 1970 World Series Game 1: Ken Burkhart’s Miraculous
delete deleteBehind-the-Back Call
• 1975 World Series Game 3: Armbrister Interferes with Fisk
• 1978 World Series Game 4: Reggie Jackson Interferes with Infield
Throw
• 1985 World Series Game 6: Don Denkinger’s Blown Call at First
Base
• 1998 World Series Game 1: Rich Garcia Gives Tino Martinez an
Extra Pitch to Work With
• 2006 World Series Game 2: Kenny Rogers and the “Smudgegate”
Affair
• 2011 World Series Games 3 and 7: Ron Kulpa and Jerry Layne Make a
Mess of Things
• 2013 World Series Game 3: Cardinals Score Game-Winner
on Obstruction Call at Third Base
• 2017 World Series Game 5: Bill Miller’s Oddly Shaped Strike
Zone
Notes
Bibliography
Index
Jonathan Weeks has authored several sports biographies and two novels. He lives in Malone, New York.
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