Unhappy Meals: Why Tuesday's Disputed Call Proves Nothing
He may have been safe.
I've watched the replay of Michael McKenry's attempted tag on Julio Lugo about 30 times. Replays from different angles. Still photos. Reenactments performed by trained chipmunks. Consensus has it that McKenry's swipe tag caught Lugo on the leg well in front of home plate. Given the Braves and Pirates had played six hours, 39 minutes and nearly 19 innings to that point, and that this game had major playoff implications for both teams, this was supposed to be a cruel, unjust, tragic way to end it. Worse than Jim Joyce's blowing the call that cost Armando Galarraga his perfect game. Given the technology at the disposal of everyone on the planet except the four umpires on the field, this is supposed to be a final, nail-in-the-coffin example of why baseball so desperately needs instant replay.
