Sorry for the tone; I'm just baffled at the number of people, even those who are paid to know things about baseball, who seem to think that this was not only a controversial but a blown call, when it was neither. And a lot of other commenters have literally made stuff up like Craig being out of the baseline or…

Your last paragraph contains the nut of the matter: there was nothing Middlebrooks could do. And guess what? IT. DOES. NOT. MATTER. His rights ended when the ball went past him; anything—ANYTHING—even a nanosecond after that is the act of a player not making a play. An infielder not playing the ball who impedes a…

To answer your update on Oquendo bookin' it out of there, his original position was on the line between the ball and home plate. Last thing he wants is to have his penalty base called into question by coach's interference.

It actually does not matter at all that he's out of the baseline. Which he wasn't. You do not have to run third to home in foul territory; anything between where you are and where the next base is is your baseline (except the last 45 feet to first). If you alter that path by more than 3 feet to avoid being tagged,…

Yeah, because it was instantaneous. Oh wait, no, it turns out the play was more than one frame long and Joyce had a perfect view of what happened as it developed. And DeMuth called it from home. And literally EVERY OTHER UMPIRE would have called it too if the other two hadn't already. This is literally the LEAST…

Boy, you sure showed me.

The point! You have it. Many props to you, sir.

Obstruction isn't a dead ball unless there's an immediate play. Umps will let it play out and only apply the penalty if they have to; if Craig's safe on his own, there's no need to penalize it (and no E-5 to be scored).

Learn the rules.

It's the only call. How many guys called for illegal blocks in the back really meant to block guys in the back? How many catchers deliberately put their glove in the batter's swing space? How many pitchers mean to balk? The rule, like so many others in baseball, is designed to prevent a team from gaining an…

Yes, by their catcher making a terrible throw. Glad we agree. And have you noticed who they're playing? Check the topic page for Cardinals to see who Deadspin has it in for....

He no it IS the right call, as would you if you knew the rules worth a damn.

It does not matter even slightly. The only thing Craig could be held liable for is intentionally interfering with Middlebrooks while Middlebrooks still had a play. There's no contact until the ball is already by, so ANY contact, no matter who initiates it (unless Craig literally took a ten-yard detour to collide) is…

Intent has no impact on obstruction. A fielder has an absolute right to a BATTED ball, and a conditional right to a thrown ball: he can block a runner if he has to take that position to receive a throw. In this case the ball is 100 feet away when Craig trips over Middlebrooks. Intent or not, Middlebrooks has no…

As bad as Lapierre's hit was, this was far worse. Lapierre definitely steered Boyle's noggin into the dasher with a push in the numbers, but at least his motion was perpendicular to Boyle's until the last second. McLeod chased Kronwall from the blue line and was never anywhere but directly behind him, and then…

Okay, not coming down on the "don't prosecute" side of this—for the record, very much in the "prosecute" camp—but the statute Jones cites has nothing to do with criminal proceedings; it basically just assigns the AG as the state's solicitor of record if it has to go out and sue somebody. The Nodaway County PA needs a…

Definitely a foul and definitely a major, but I'd chalk this up to recklessness rather than intent to injure. Lapierre lined up his hit while Boyle was perpendicular but finished it when he shouldn't have (i.e. after Boyle's back was to him). Boyle knew he was there. Not sure the editorializing ("savagely") is…

Yeah, the 17/14 thing is not ipso facto illegal in MO (as you note, statutory 2nd deg requires one party 21+ and the other <17) but anyone who has sex with a person under 14 is guilty of Stat 1, no ifs, ands, or buts, and gets five to life. Neither consent nor any perception that the child is older than 14 is a…

Man, you guys are really going to remarkable lengths to troll Leitch. D'ya have a pool to see who can get him to snap or something?

I think it important to point out here that the SAT is always administered on Saturdays (Sundays only if you're shomer Shabbos, but never weekdays), which means cheerleaders would, by your logic, be expected to keep all of their Saturdays completely clear for practice. Which is nuts.