Phil Cuzzi's Call Friday Night Did Affect ALDS Game

Not only is it unbelievable to think that Phil Cuzzi's call did not effect the game on Friday night, but it also had another effect on baseball.

Whether you like it or not Cuzzi's call did effect Friday night's game. Could the score have wound up the way it did? Yes. Could it have been differently? Yes. Was the call wrong? Absolutey!

By now we know what the situation was. Joe Mauer was up hit a ball down the left field line that Melky Cabrera couldn't get to and would have wound up with Mauer on second with a double. Cuzzi who had an excellent view of the play ruled that it was foul, yet the call was clearly wrong and replays confirmed that suspicion.

Mauer ended up getting to first base with a single. Next batter was Jason Kubel who hit another single getting Mauer to second, and Michael Cuddyer hit another single putting runners Kubel on second and Mauer on third. The Twins had the bases loaded with no outs.

At the time the score was 3-3 in the top of the 11th inning. The Twins didn't score a run. Delmon Young hit a liner to first. Carlos Gomez reached on a fielders choice with Mauer being forced out at home, and Brendan Harris flied out to end the inning.

Recently on bleacherreport there was titled "Phil-Cuzzi's-call-had-no-Effect-on-Outcome-of-Friday-night's-ALDS Game"

This article examines the call and the writer Joseph Delgrippo wants you to believe that a call that was totally missed had no effect on the outcome of the game. Well, I've got news for Delgrippo it does.

Again not only did the call have an immediate impact in the game, but it also made an additional impact for baseball that will have to be examined by Major League Baseball, but I'll get to that later.

Delgrippo's first claim is this "But no one mentioned that Phil Cuzzi's call had no effect on the game's outcome."

He does make a good argument of what the Yankees would have done if the call had been correct and that is to assume that DaMaso Marte would pitch around Jason Kubel and put runners on first and second with no outs.

Dave Robertson would have then come into pitch to Michael Cuddyer in hopes for a double play.

Then he caps off his article by stating this "But even if Mauer was sent in by the third base coach and scored, and the Twins took a one-run lead into the bottom of the 11th, do you really think the Yankees would have settled and only scored on Teixeira's leadoff home run? Me neither."

Is DelGrippo's assertion that even though the Twins would have gotten the same result runners on first and second with no outs that the result of the game would have been the same?

Well, I don't think it's true. I know most teams in the playoffs do not want to put additional runners on base especially when the game is tied. Maybe in that situation Marte does eventually walk Kubel and the Yankees bring in Robertson.

Here is another situation there are runners at first and second base for the Twins with no outs. Maybe Ron Gardenhire is thinking about what is the best situation for the Twins runners on first and second or runners at second and third?

Maybe Gardenhire has Cuddyer bunt the runners over. I seem to remember Ramon Hernandez in a playoff series against Boston drop down a bases loaded bunt.

In this case there's too many scenarios to flat out say that the end result of the game would have been the same if Cuzzi had actually made the correct call.

Then the notion that just because Mark Teixeira hit a home run that the Yankees would have won in the bottom of the 11th inning anyways.

Finally though the game's effect is going to last longer for baseball in terms of the call for instant replay. They need it and it's that simple. No other major sport doesn't have replay.

Does Basketball have it? Yes and they've expanded it. Does Hockey have it? Yes. Does Football have it? Yes.

Again there's a simple way to fix the replay to make it work for baseball and that is for fair and foul calls near the lines and on close plays at home. I'm sorry, but in any situation especially in the playoffs if a runner is ruled out or safe you want to be able to make sure that call is correct.

Baseball has to get away from ignoring the digital age it's like a senior citizen avoiding technology because it's not what they are used to. Baseball can no longer be ok with the notion that "umpires are human and make mistakes."

Every other sport has realized yes that mistakes happen, but replay can either confirm or deny the call. In baseball there's nothing that can confirm or deny the call. On a rare occassion an umpire may have had the better view and hold a conference with the other umpires and make the correct call.