Rightly, baseball fans in general as well as Houston Astros fans, are ragging on Cowboy Joe West for taking away a two-run homer from Jose Altuve last night and instead calling him out on fan interference committed against Red Sox outfielder Mookie Betts.
Per ESPN, the MLB rule is clear. One the ball goes over the wall, you cannot call interference. A fan has a right to that ball. And per replay, the ball was clearly over the wall. So was Betts' glove. Whether Cowboy Joe is more blind, re replay, or more an idiot, re the rule, I don't know. But the only interference was him interfering with the game of baseball.
But he's not the first. The two other most egregious interference blown calls in the postseason were about player interference, though.
I still remember the throwing error by Carlton Fisk when Ed Armbrister dropped a bunt to advance Cesar Geronimo, and home plate ump Larry Barnett did NOT call interference when Armbrister got in Fisk's way, because he claimed it was not "intentional." Intent is not part of the interference rules because you can't divine intent.
On the other hand, intent was pretty obvious when Reggie Jackson used his hip, non-running from first to second, to block Bill Russell's throw to first to double-play Lou Pinella.
True that Rule 7.09F requires player intentionality in some subsections. But, per subsection (d), Reggie was "gather(ed) around any base." And subsection (e) doesn't require intentionality.
And, Cowboy Joe didn't even have the worst blown call on fan interference. That would be Rich Garcia blowing the Jeffrey Maier call and giving Derek Jeter a home run as Tony Tarasco waited to catch it.
Oh, Sawks fans? In 2013, that WAS interference, or technically, obstruction by Will Middlebrooks against Allen Craig. Not blown. Because, again, intent isn't part of the rule, and Middlebrooks wasn't making a play on Craig.
I said it last night and I will say it again. Fire Joe West, Angel Hernandez and CB Bucknor. I have no love for either the Astros or the Red Sox, but all three of them have been responsible for more blown calls than all the others combined. (I can't objectively prove this and I doubt there is evidence to support this contention) The game is not better for them being in it. If I could remove all the subjectivity of the game in one swift stroke I would. Then I would smite any umpire that refuses to call the proper strike zone or who shifts it at any point in the game or who does not call the same pitch the same way for any pitcher on the mound. I would prefer them to be absolutely devoid of personality. Unlike football where they are willing to suffer the rage of the players directed at them, their fragile egos will not allow them to be questioned. Allow the human error into the game because why? Tradition? That is a large load of the leavings of farm animals.
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