Muller: Baseball Doesn't Need More Instant Replay
By Shawn Muller--
CHICAGO (CBS) -- There are certain things in life that you just don't mess with.
You don't add a strobe light to the flame of the Statue of Liberty because it is more "modern." You don't paint the White House ecru because it is more "aesthetically pleasing." And you don't re-name the Sears Tower (yeah, I went there).
Some things are just fine the way they are…and Major League Baseball is no exception to this rule.
Back in 2008, MLB decided to institute instant replay to check home run balls.
At that moment, I realized that the game I--and all the generations that came before me--came to know and love, would never be the same. The "human element," the one that had been the sole factor in determining every call since the league began, would now have to share a seat with technology.
To me, adding instant replay was messing with the history of the game, and I did not like it. Even if it would help get every home run call correct. I feared that once the door to using instant replay was opened, it would only be a matter of time before more elements would potentially be added to the reviewable list.
In 2012, it looks like my fears may be realized.
Yesterday, Major League Baseball announced that, beginning in 2012, they are considering expanding instant replay to cover trapped balls and fair-or-foul calls down the left and right field lines. While this idea has yet to become official, baseball "purists" like myself, knew that this day would come. Once the instant replay door was opened back in 2008, there was no way that Major League Baseball would just sit on the home run review.
Now, I am not some Neanderthal living in a cave.
I love technology as much as the next guy and I think that instant replay is just fine for basketball, hockey, and football.
But it has no place in the game of baseball.
Do major league umpires blow a call or two during the course of a game?
Sure, it happens.
But to me--in some weird way--that is the beauty of having the "human element" in complete control over every call on the field. I enjoy the "what if" aspect surrounding games after a team loses a close one due to some questionable calls. It gives the fans and the media something to talk about, and makes every play in the game crucial because there may not be a "do over."
Those who favor the change agree with it because they believe that, if you have the resources available to ensure the right call is made every time, it would be foolish not to implement them…and it is fine and dandy for these people to feel this way. I just think that baseball has been fine without the use of instant replay, so why start now?
Baseball should never be a game of "do overs."
It is not the way the game was meant to be.
The players from yesteryear didn't have the benefit of a call being reversed, so let's not take things too far for the players of today and tomorrow. How many home runs would Babe Ruth actually have finished his career with if he had instant replay, or Hank Aaron, or Willie Mays? How many pitchers could have lost a no-hitter, or a shut-out, because a hit down the line was reversed?
Technology doesn't automatically make things better.
Sometimes, things are just fine the way they are.
Baseball was just fine.
Do you agree with Shawn? Post your comments below.
Shawn Muller has lived in the great city of Chicago for 7 years. He is a 2002 graduate of the University of Wisconsin-Madison and, in October of 2010, Shawn received his certificate in radio broadcasting. In his free time, Shawn enjoys spending time with his wife Melissa and 3 year old daughter Ava, catching any live sporting event, and traveling. Check out his radio show, Grab Some Bench with Muller and Bangser" every Thursday night at 8:30 P.M., at www.blogtalkradio.com/spmuller24.
