MLB: What Was the Real Reason Joe Girardi Didn't Protest Last Night's Game?

Anyone who questions Joe Girardi’s desire to win is a fool.

From his days as one of the leaders of the 1989 Eastern Division Champion Chicago Cubs to his clutch triple off Greg Maddux in the 1996 World Series to his managing the New York Yankees to the 2009 World Championship, Joe Girardi has been a winner.

Joe Girardi is also smart—perhaps too smart for the Yankees good.

Last night, Girardi failed to protest the game against the Kansas City Royals at Kauffman Stadium. It will not be costly, despite what the media claim.

Billy Butler hit a ground-rule double in the third inning that was incorrectly declared a home run. The umpires decided to review the hit by instant replay. When they finished their astute analysis, Butler still had a home run.

Joe Girardi explained that he trusted the umpire’s to know the ground rules. Speaking to the media, the skipper explained:

"I figured Dana (DiMuth) knew the rules. The reason I didn't (protest) is because I believed the umpire, that he knew the ground rules and went over them the first day. I probably should have."

"Maybe I erred. I believed the umpire," Girardi added. "If he's right, he's right and we lost the game. If he's wrong, it's very unfortunate."

Mariano Rivera was outraged as he watched events unfold.

"I mean, that cost us the game," said Rivera. "Tie game, you know? I understand we're human, but come on. You have replays, and get the call wrong? That's unacceptable."

Does it sound as if Girardi has lost his edge? What would Billy Martin or Ralph Houk have done?
 
The truth is that Girardi hasn’t come close to losing his desire to win.

The Yankees are virtually assured of making the playoffs. All to be determined is whether they or their friends from Boston will win the division.

As Girardi proved last season, making the playoffs—not winning the division—is paramount.

At this point in the season, Girardi might be thinking ahead too much. He might not be concerned enough with the remainder of the regular season because he has the safety net of the Wild Card.

He may have become a little too complacent. Perhaps he hasn’t. He may be as complacent as a fox.

If the season were to end today, the Eastern Division winner would play Justin Verlander’s Detroit Tigers in a best-of-five series. The Wild Card would play the defending American League Champion Texas Rangers.

The Rangers are a better team than the Tigers, but in a five game series, the shadow of facing Justin Verlander twice is not appealing. We all remember how Girardi’s predecessor, Joe Torre, used to say how the first playoff round is a crapshoot.

Don’t ever think that Joe Girardi decided not to protest the game because he thought that the umpires knew the rules.

Joe Girardi had been around the block too many times to believe that.