I don't know too much about baseball. . . .

[xiphias]

. . . but when the radio color commentators start discussing the strategy involved in how you deploy the extra police officers and security guards, that CAN'T be a good sign.

"Now the riot police are being deployed along the first base line and. . ."

Comments

[mattblum.livejournal.com]

No, it's not a good sign. But, since the game was in the Bronx and the fans were throwing things onto the field, you can hardly blame the security staff for taking that step.

[goljerp]

The thing is, the fans were upset because there were two cases where an ump made a call, someone protested, and then all the umps gathered together... and made the right call, reversing the initial decision. In both cases, the call was right, based on the instant replays that we saw at home. Presumably, the fans didn't see 'em... and since in one case a Boston triple turned into a Home Run (making it 4-0 Boston rather than 3-0) and in the second case changing an error letting the runner at first score and leaving another on first (making it 4-3, with one out) to an out by interference by a base runner (making it 4-2, two outs, runner at first), you can understand the high passions. Throwing stuff, though, that's just wrong.

Of course, the fact that I'm a Red Sox fan might bias my opinion slightly :-)

[cheshyre]

I ran to the TV and watched the second call to see what happened. [I've mostly been following the game on the radio with MLB.com's Gameday window]
Why can't/don't they play the closeup on the big Diamondvision screen so everybody in the stadium can see what just happened?]

[rivka.livejournal.com]

Why can't/don't they play the closeup on the big Diamondvision screen so everybody in the stadium can see what just happened?

I understand why they don't do it as a general rule - if the umpire made the wrong call, showing the replay and getting 55,000 fans worked into a lather of righteous fury could be downright dangerous. And if the call was very close (as it often is), it would just increase the contentiousness. Usually it's best to move on.

But in both of these specific instances, I think it would have been helpful to show the slow motion replay in the stadium. I think that even a hardcore Yankees fan would have to admit, "Okay, yeah, damn it, that was a home run," and "Okay, that's not just random arm-pumping while he's running."

[goljerp]

Well, in these cases, where the umps made the right ruling, it would be good. But what about those cases where the umps make a ruling which isn't backed up by instant replay -- in other words, the (objectively) wrong ruling? Or where the instant replay is inconclusive? Their rulings are supposed to be based on what the umps see, not on the instant replay.

[laurens10.livejournal.com]

Tapuz remarked that part of the incentive for unleashing the riot police might be a general show of strength by the NYPD that they can be ready for anything -- inside and outside the baseball field, and completely unrelated to the baseball field.