Bases loaded, two outs, bottom for the sixth, must-win game for a team facing nothing but must-win games from here on out. Yankees have been stalled at 4 runs and the Mariners are threatening to make a game of it.
Ryan Langerhans has battled his way to a 3-2 count. David Robertson's pitch comes in and Langerhans reads low...he takes it decisively and takes two long steps from the plate before he hears the emphatic strike three call. The proper response was given by Langerhans. The BS strike calls have been going against the Mariners all day long and Langerhans boils over, slamming the bat down in disgust and flipping his helmet like it's been shot from a cannon. Bucknor is among the worst umpires in the game's modern history. It's been well documented that his strike zone is not remotely close to consistent, nor particularly aligned with the rulebook zone (see the umpire review by the Hardball Times). But this was egredious bias...just like the egredious bias we faced September 1st, 2007 in the famous Washburn game which got out of hand upon the arrival of Sean Green and the blatant decision by the umpire to throw off the rules and screw the Mariners at all cost (remember? 11 balls called that were clearly strikes in one single half-inning? 9 runs scored?).
The fix is in...you should get angry. You don't get angry, you should get out of the game, because you're playing a man's game and you have the competitive fire of a 6 year old girl scout.
Don Wakamatsu should have been out there throwing bases and kicking up a cloud of dust they could see from outer space. His lack of a reaction was managerial malpractice and he should be ashamed of himself.
French had 10 strikes get called balls (and no balls called strikes) that would have swung him from a 58% strike rate, to a 67%. And against that Sergio Mitre had TWO really borderline pitches called balls that probably should have been strikes and had them replaced by 2 pitches that were an inch or two outside the zone called strikes...to say nothing of the crap the relievers got away with.
I disagree, I think. There is reason to be upset, sure. But Wakamatsu is too cool to try and show an umpire up. It's not his style, it never has been and it never will be. Does that change anything? Not as far as I can tell. Is a manager going to intimidate an umpire into swining more calls in his favor? Maybe, but not if it's a good umpire.
McLaren was a pretty calm guy, but he had this idea that there were times that required emotion, and so he'd go out with a Pinella-like display that didn't fit with his persona. He looked like an idiot, and I can only assume he looked just as idiotic when airing out his team behind closed doors. He broke away from himself and probably lost respect from the players and umpires.
If Wakamatsu were to come charging out of the dugout with an uncharacteristic display of emotion, I think it would do more harm than good. I would lose respect for him, and I would imagine that some of his players would as well. People like it when their leaders are able to keep the same character no matter how dicey the situation.
Or maybe that's just me. I would put my personality type in line with Wak's (calm and collected), so maybe I'm among the minority when it comes to wishing Wak would come out of character and get in an ump's face.
In fact, it's worth a simoleon...
Some people show it more than others...and some people are more demonstrative than others...but everyone is capable of being fully within their normal character and showing emotion when the stakes are high enough and the feelings strong enough. If there was ever a moment where the stakes were high enough and the emotions should have been strong enough...this would be that moment. Maybe Wak doesn't have to throw bases, but he needed to at least LEAVE THE FREAKIN' DUGOUT and argue the call in the 6th...that was the last straw...the game-breaking moment after a whole series of horribly lopsided calls...that should have been enough for Wak to get behind his players and defend the Mariners from this game fixing horse manuer.
Yes I'm hacked off, and I'm more of a passionate, emotional personality, but I don't think it's asking too much for our manager to defend his players against an umpire who obviously has no respect for his uniform, for the game, or for the Mariners. This is a man who has no right at all to have the job he has. He has no honor and I for one think someone ought to call him on it.
The umpires alwyas wait until the most important moment to stick it to Seattle. Get the bases loaded and their guy walks in a run but the umpire rips the run right off the scoreboard. The relievers got away with most of the BS but that's because most of the important moments happened when they were in the game.
Meanwhile they decided to ram a flagpole up French's keister because he's a rookie and pitching against the Yankees. This is it...how ayn logical, right-thinking Mariner fan can watch this game get fixed by the home plate ump time and time again and NOT be in favor of having balls and strikes called by pitch F/X (with umpire oversight in case of obvious computer error) is beyond me. This cheating has to stop and it has to stop NOW.
But easy on the visuals there amigo, please.
The admins are maybe even more sensitive to it than I am :- )
And if, hypothetically, a manager decided to attempt to do his job with 0 ejections ever, he would never see the end of his second or third season. No matter how good he was at everything else.
You get too soft, you will be taken advantage of, both inside the clubhouse and out of it. That's a fact.
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James pointed out that very few managers, other than Cox, last a long time with one team because the soft guys lose control, and the hard guys tick everybody off after a while.
About the middle of the second season is the farthest a guy would get if he were butter-soft.
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Wok has done great with the clubhouse, but just hypothetically now, you could and would lose your job if you let the umps push you around at will.
I am just really...really tired of this. Tired of watching a team I care about get treated so unjustly and having people tell me "that's part of the game"...tired of a manager who won't stand up for his players when things like this keep happening week after frustrating week...tired of being the AL's whipping-boy when the players on the field deserve so much better.
I can't remember the last I was this angry about a stupid game.
I wrote and erased at least 8 different paragraphs in my replies here that included a lot of profanity...LOL At least I can cut out the swear words...:)
I have no intention of watching today's game. Why should I watch a game when the outcome is fixed by the umps?
We could tell that it was Lou-toned-down-to-Larussa. LOL.
...I was VERY angry about last night's game...as in, shaky legs, clenched fists red faced anger for about half an hour after that strike three call in the 6th and high blood pressure for the rest of the evening angry. Been a good long while since I got so mad at a baseball game.