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By Jon Weisman
Torii Hunter was ruled safe at second base on a replay review, but that can’t take away from the brilliance of this play by Yasiel Puig.
Puig’s throw is, as usual, incredible, but what I truly love about the play is that he knows exactly when to give up his pursuit of the catch and positions himself in exactly the right spot for the carom off the wall, in a ballpark he has never played in before.
Unfortunately for the Dodgers, what started off as a banner night — five runs in the first inning off Justin Verlander, capped by a two-run homer by Juan Uribe on an 0-2 pitch — dissolved in a rough one for Hyun-Jin Ryu, who never looked quite right from the moment he walked Detroit leadoff batter Austin Jackson with that 5-0 lead.
Ryu survived the first, but then allowed eight hits — tying a Dodger record — in the the bottom of the second, including Hunter’s double, and all of the lead. Three of the last four hits brought a succession of pain.
That grounder by Davis not only had eyes, I think it had a nose and a mouth.
— Dodger Insider (@DodgerInsider) July 9, 2014
Kemp tries to deke the runner on a blooper by Cabrera in no man’s land, but the tying run comes in.
— Dodger Insider (@DodgerInsider) July 9, 2014
Another blooper. This is killer.
— Dodger Insider (@DodgerInsider) July 9, 2014
A 6-3 double-play bouncer by Hunter finally freed Ryu to return to the dugout, 63 pitches to his name (27 in the first inning, 36 in the second). Los Angeles 5, Detroit 5, heading into the third.
Asher B. Garber
What bothers me about replay is that the umpire crew at Command Central seem to be spending 3-5 minutes breaking down frame by frame in order to find the evidence to overturn. That should not be the nature of replay. It should be if something is missed or needs clarification. In this case, the throw beat the runner, and the tag was applied quick enough to achieve an out. If it’s not evident after 90 seconds then they need to let the call stand.
Don Bright
On top of that, I think Rojas got Hunter on the knee, well the loose pant part of it. His uniform sure looks like it moves in a way like the glove had made contact with it, before his foot hits the bag.
Bill Allan (@pizwillie)
I wonder how big the screens are that MLB uses to check the replays on? Have you ever noticed the little TVs that NBA refs review calls with. I’m sitting home with a 50″ screen, wondering how they make can make some of those calls on that little TV!