Even the New York Mets called Thursday’s 3-2 win over the Miami Marlins a happy break.
With the basics loaded and one down in the ninth after Jeff McNeil tied the score with a home run that led from the innings, a 1-2 pitch in the inside of the home plate swept Michael Conforto to his elbow cushion he leans over the board to give the Mets the win.
Home plate referee Ron Kulpa initially started calling Conforto with strike three.
The referee’s crew granted the call, but Kulpa’s decision exists. Under the recurrence rules, a call about whether a pitch is in the striking zone when it touches a batter and whether the batter tries not to touch can not be reviewed.
On the other hand, Rule 5.05 (b) (2) provides that a seizure is entitled on the first basis if it is struck by a counter, unless:
-
(A) The ball is in the striking zone when it touches the batter, or (B) The batter does not try to be touched by the ball; (2) If the ball is in the striking zone when it touches the batter, it will be called a strike, regardless of whether the batter tries to avoid the ball or not. If the ball is outside the hitting zone when it hits the batter, it will be called a ball if it does not try to touch.
After the match, Kulpa admitted in the pool report that he had made the wrong call and said: ‘That man was hit by the field in the hitting zone. I should have called him. ‘
“Not like I wanted to win the ball game,” Conforto said. “I wanted to go there and drive the ball somewhere. From my side it was a slider, it felt like it was coming back to me. I turned. There was maybe just a little bit of my elbow raised just out of habit, out of reaction, and it barely cut off the edge of my elbow shield.I saw it [Kulpa] set me up. I think that’s why you did not immediately see a reaction from me. I did not know what was going to happen. I knew there would be controversy. Our first base coach yelled at me to get down there and touch the base, and let’s get out of here. ‘
Marlins manager Don Mattingly said the referees told him all they could judge was whether the field had hit Conforto. Whether or not Conforto turns in the field was a judgment call “and they would not meet about it.”
“I think the hardest part is that it’s just a strike. So simple,” Mattingly said. “You would think with all the repetition we do, that you could say, ‘The ball is a strike. ‘I wonder what happens if they put the automatic strike zone on and the plane breaks down and the man does. I wonder if this is a strike or not. I think it’s for later. ‘
McNeil, who turned 29 on Thursday, led the ninth innings of the team’s home opener against Marlins closer, Anthony Bass with a long home run to the top deck in the right field, with a big batting surface.
As for the end? “It was pretty amazing,” McNeil said. “Nick Conforto just happened to be there. We took a breather and just won the game.”
Conforto said he had no idea what the rules were on the play until he saw it on TV screens in the clubhouse after the game.
“I think it comes down to the call on the field,” he said. “I think the controversy was that he first called it a strike and then said it hit me.”
Mets manager Luis Rojas said he thought the referees were making the right decision. “I saw the strike call and then I saw the hit by pitch,” he said. “Ultimately, the referees have to make the right call. It’s definitely an interesting call. The hand movement and trying to get out of the way caused the pitch. But we take the call.”
The Mets were happy to send their fans home with the win.
“Good to have the fans back,” Conforto said. ‘Good to get the atmosphere back. When Jeff hits the homer, the place just explodes. The noise of the crowd, we missed it. ‘
The ruling was acknowledged by at least one betting site. FanDuel said it issues refunds for money bets on the Marlins, as well as for schemes in which the Marlins money line was the only leg up.