Seriously... I kind of feel good for Jim Joyce. Most of the times an umpire's name is not part of the story of the game.Every once in a while an ump does something truly memorable, like Don Denkinger blowing that call in the 1985 World Series or Eric Gregg having a strike zone approximately 5 yards wide and 15 feet high in the 1997 NLCS.
But to TRULY be the story is very rare.
If the Cardinals pulled a double play on the next batter, nobody would have remembered the blown call. And the Braves could have adjusted instead of looking at those wide strikes.
But what Jim Joyce did today was extraordinary.
He blew the final play of a perfect game.Armando Galarraga threw a perfect game. He did. That's not an opinion... that's a fact. And in real time it looked like he covered first for the final out in time.
In slow motion it looked like... um... it wasn't close.
This wasn't a blown call in the 7th. If an ump blows a call in the 7th, 8th or even the top of the 9th, you can't necessarily say the pitcher would have completed the perfect game. He could relax after letting up a hit.
But with 2 outs in the 9th... there is no other scenario other than "Perfect Game" or "Blown Call" on that grounder.
There have been only 20 perfect games thrown in baseball history (and it seems like 15 of them have been thrown since Mother's Day.) It should be 21.
Why isn't it 21?
Because of Jim Joyce.
And what is the headline for this wonderful game? Is it Armando Galarraga's game of his life?
Nope!
It's Jim Joyce!
And from this day forward when people talk about perfect games and they list perfect games, announcers will say "And remember Armando Galarraga had a perfect game, but the final call was blown by Jim Joyce."
That is epic.
That is knowing this massive bed wetting will be known among the all time bad calls.
Doesn't happen every day for an ump.
Oh and one more thing... did you see Galarraga's reaction?
He was grinning.
Jim Joyce stole his bid for immortality and he had a smile on his face.
How classy was that?
How centered is this guy?
Or maybe he knows that Joyce just got himself his own place in baseball history... and not the way he wants it.
INSTANT REPLAY ANYONE?
Joyce was also the left field ump who got Mark Bellhorn's HR wrong in Game 6 of the 2004 ALCS, until it was overturned by the other umps.
ReplyDeleteNice job, Jim.
The Picture you posted is the one thing that sticks out to me.
ReplyDeleteAdd Galarraga's reaction after the game has to put him into The Classiest Athletes Hall Of Fame.
I do not know any other player in any other sport that would handle something like this with such class.
There is only 3 other times I have seen Athletes handle something so noteworthy with anywhere near the class, and these 3 were in losses
1) was Bill Buckner in 1986, 2) was Tim Wakefield in 2003 and 3) was Mariano Rivera after the 2004 ALCS.
Go to the Cleveland.com website,
ReplyDeleteAll these loser fans in Cleveland say there was a bobble.
Oops, it is just one Loser fan called MyTribe, Sorry to diss on all Indian fans
ReplyDeleteI say no to replay myself... if baseball commissioner Selig knows what he is doing(which he usually doesn't) then he will deem it a "Perfect Game" for the record books. The Michigan Governor has already declared it as such.
ReplyDeleteGalarraga's reaction was amazing, agreed. He said, "Nobody's Perfect" on a night that he was... then when Joyce confronted him to apologize, Galarraga gave him a hug.
This is baseball. This is why I love this game.
Umps need to be held more accountable, fine him...suspend him..send him to the minors for work...or mlb should come in a change it to a perfect game..its just sad.
ReplyDelete