Inside Baseball: No need for a Fall Classic in November
NEW YORK — There were huge cheers Friday night in Yankee Stadium when the borough-sized HD Jumbotron showed a video montage of the franchise's best moments in ALCS history. One of the biggest roars came as Aaron Boone's 11th-inning home run off Red Sox knuckleballer Tim Wakefield soared into the left-field stands to win Game Seven of the 2003 ALCS.
You were struck by the graphic that accompanied the clip: "Oct. 16, 2003." Yep, Friday was the six-year anniversary of that famous Yankee home run. In Game Seven. And we were watching it before Game One of this year's ALCS against the Angels. And there's one of baseball's biggest problems.
This postseason, more than any other, is far too drawn out. It doesn't need to stretch until Nov. 5, which is the scheduled date of Game Seven of the World Series. It needs to get a move-on.
Forget about the rain which threatened this series over the weekend. Hey, that can happen in July too. But cold weather is not made for baseball. And neither is snow. What are we going to do starting next year with the Twins, of all people, moving to an outdoor stadium? They're perennially in postseason contention and might barge through some year.
There are off days in the division series and even an off day with no travel between Games Four and Five of the LCS. The Yankees and Angels could have played three days before they did. Frankly, the Angels' poor showing in Game One looked as much about a team that was rusty as it was about a bunch of guys freezing in 30-degree windchills.
You need rest in the NHL and NBA. NFL teams are desperate for that playoff bye. Sitting around is curtains in baseball. Ask the '06 Tigers or '07 Rockies how all their momentum went away with a long break before the World Series.
Game One Friday night was just the Yankees' fourth game in 12 days. The Sabres are used to that schedule, folks. A normal baseball slate has 19 off days during the regular season; the New York Post pointed out last week the Phillies had 14 last October alone en route to their World Series title.
That kind of stuff changes the game far too much. If they didn't get rain in the ALCS, the Yankees were all set on a three-man rotation of CC Sabathia, A.J. Burnett and Andy Pettitte and didn't have to fret a start from Joba Chamberlain or Chad Gaudin. Those No. 4-5 starts were major potholes during the season.
They could use ace relievers Phil Hughes and Mariano Rivera with impunity, never worrying about them throwing three days in a row and needing a day off at any point in the postseason. And with so many days off, Rivera could easily get four- and five-out saves.
Obviously, television dictates the show. And there are logistical issues that really force baseball to plan far in advance what day the World Series will start. Fair enough. It's the game's international showcase and has become a big corporate event. So you lock those dates in (even if it's absurd that Game One is on Oct. 28).
But maybe a pre-World Series buildup should be the only time teams are sitting. Why can't one LCS start two or three days before the other or, even, before the division series is complete in the other league? And why do you take an off day in the LCS without teams even leaving town?
Fox and TBS get way too much say. And it's not changing because their contracts run through 2013. TBS, especially, doesn't deserve that kind of pull. It continues to foist the foibles of clueless Chip Caray upon us. We deserve better.
Ump upheaval
There's more going on with all the bad umpiring in the postseason than just the need for some guys to get glasses and others to get help from instant replay.
Several outlets are reporting that seven crew chiefs are out of the postseason with various injuries and ailments. They included John Hirschbeck's bout with testicular cancer and a stroke suffered by Rick Reed. Five other umpires are also out with injuries. Several have concussions and there's concern that masks are not doing the job they should on foul balls.
So the pool of quality candidates is definitely down. Throw in rules in the umpires contract that prevent anyone from working back-to-back series in the postseason or back-to-back World Series in the same year and you have certain umpires (think Laz Diaz, C.B. Bucknor or Angel Hernandez) who barely should be working Pirates-Nationals in June, let alone any October game.
As for replay, it certainly should be expanded to determine fair/foul calls so the Phil Cuzzi play in Game Two of the ALDS in New York can be corrected. But I'm not a proponent of using it on base plays. Even in high definition, it can still be tough to get a call right? Did Mark Teixeira keep his foot on the bag in time Friday night on Torii Hunter's bunt? See.
Following Wedge
Red Sox pitching coach John Farrell, the former Cleveland farm director and Bisons pitcher, was the No. 1 choice of the Tribe to replace Eric Wedge but he has pulled out. So who's got next?
Former Tribe skipper Mike Hargrove is definitely interested. Deposed Nationals skipper Manny Acta has already interviewed and Buffalo Baseball Hall of Famer Torey Lovullo will speak to GM Mark Shapiro. The Plain Dealer also speculated on former Mets manager Bobby Valentine and former Rockies manager Clint Hurdle.
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