Should Instant Replay be used by MLB in the Same Manner as the NFL?

Should instant replay be used in MLB as it is in the NFL?

That is a question that should be addressed, the sooner the better. Not just for the integrity of the game, but for the sake of “what's right is right.”

I am Old School but I am not closed minded. I watched the World Series which recently ended and I must say there were some pretty bad calls.

Alex Rodriguez’ home run had to be looked at through the scope because the ball actually hit a TV camera that was in HR territory, then bounced back in.

A play that featured Philadelphia Phillies first baseman Ryan Howard short-hopping a ball and the 1B umpire called the batter out, thus allowing a double play.

Plays like these happen all of the time and if it were little league or American Legion ball I don’t think it would be such a big deal.  But when you have guys who are making more money than the Kings of other countries combined, a closer look is warranted.

I don’t mean a full scale, carte blanche, look-at-every-play deal.  I am speaking rather of a format similar to that of the National Football League. Umpires are only human, they do a great job, nearly all of the time. It is that small iota of a percent that puts the game in a chaotic state.

We aren’t playing in medieval times here, we should employ the technologies that we possess. Just because they didn’t have recording devices in Shoeless Joe’s day, does not mean we should just not do it for the “integrity of the ages”.

Here are my thoughts on the subject.:

1) Each game would have an MLB Umpire sitting in the control booth.  He would be the sole, deciding factor in all disputes.

2) Each manager would have one instance in which he can request an instant replay.

3) The umpire in the control booth could, at his discretion, halt the game and look at a play himself.

4) The disputed calls would not have to be just home runs. It could be anything that happens on the field, other than a ball/strike call.

Maybe more regulations could be added to that, but I believe that it is necessary for the sake of the outcome of the game.

Naysayers would say that it isn’t fair to the players who played in earlier time periods, even the Mayflower Boys. I could only respond with this: Just because they didn’t have the capability to play night games in those days, does not mean we should not play them now, in fairness.

Each age has seen its own adaptations. For instance, in the earliest of times, they pitched the ball underhanded from a drawn box, and they had no home run fences. But the evolution of the game dictated that changes be made and they were.

There was a time, I believe, when it took five balls to warrant a walk. Think of the pitchers today who could be saved if that rule was still kicking.

This is all just fodder for good ol’ sitting-around-the-pot-bellied-stove talks. But, in all seriousness, what is more important, sticking by our old guns, or getting it right, which could mean millions for someone in the long run.