A controversial lost replay challenge by the Atlanta Braves in the ninth inning on Sunday night marked the difference in the game when the Philadelphia Phillies came from behind in a wild 7-6 victory.
Phillies third baseman Alec Bohm slipped home with the final winning run when Braves-catcher Travis d’Arnaud tried to apply the tag and moved from the third base side of the plate to the first base where Bohm came in.
Plate umpire Lance Barrett called Bohm safe, although replays showed that he may never have hit home plate. After a long delay for the video challenge, the court ruling was upheld.
“It’s a blast in real time,” said Braves starter Drew Smyly after the game. “We have five different angles on a match that’s being broadcast on national television, and it’s clear that his foot didn’t hit the record. It was owed. It’s embarrassing not to overthrow MLB that. Can you do that? not overthrow? “
MLB’s official ruling stated that the replay official “could not definitively determine that the runner had not hit home plate before the fielder applied the tag.”
“At first I didn’t know if he was safe or not, but after watching the replay it seemed as if his foot didn’t touch the bag from every angle we saw,” said d’Arnaud. “I thought it was clearly written on the plate.”
Players across the league agreed, and Justin Turner and Mike Trout shared their thoughts on the call on Twitter.
Absolutely cheeky, saw two corners that were clear he never hit the plate and we get a call stand? I’m with everyone else, what’s the point of playing again? https://t.co/4F1bZAzNCX
– Justin Turner (@ redturn2) April 12, 2021
So bad … 😂
– Mike Trout (@MikeTrout) April 12, 2021
The inning started with a tie, 6-6. After Bohm led off with a double, Jean Segura grounded to second, enabling Bohm to advance to third base. Lefty Didi Gregorius then hit a shallow flyout to the left off Braves-reliever Will Smith. Braves left fielder Marcell Ozuna camped underneath, then threw a two-hopper to the plate, slightly to the third base side. D’Arnaud caught the ball and then slid to first to tag Bohm when his left foot hit the plate.
Bohm was asked if he thought he was safe after the game. “I was called safe,” he said. “That’s all that matters.”
Phillies manager Joe Girardi added, “We felt like we had a chance [to score on the fly ball]It was a narrow one, and it was at the skin of the big toe that we scored. It looked like his big toe hit the corner of the plate when we saw all the angles. “
The Braves totally disagreed.
“It doesn’t even make me want to [replay] more, “said d’Arnaud.” It just slows down the game. For me they were wrong. I’d rather not get the game going. “
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Braves’ Brian Snitker, Drew Smyly and Travis d’Arnaud expressed their frustrations with a controversial home plate call to the Phillies, with Smyly calling it embarrassing.
Braves manager Brian Snitker said he didn’t get a proper explanation from the umpires after the call, while d’Arnaud said the replay official in New York should be the one to be interviewed. After the Braves lost the challenge, the scaled-down crowd in Truist Park responded by throwing trash onto the pitch, leading to a scolding of Braves shortstop Dansby Swanson.
“I love our city,” Swanson said. “I love our fans. They are passionate. They care. But what happened after they announced that call is the most embarrassing part of the whole night.
“Throwing things on the field, it’s disrespectful to the people who put in so much work to have the field ready for us every day … It’s an embarrassing representation of our city. The worst part is that I don’t. I don’t think people realize we have families here. There are kids sitting in the front row and you have bottles whizzing in their heads. Endangering kids who might not be able to protect themselves is downright embarrassing and wouldn’t be another times. “
The controversy overshadowed another good game from Braves outfielder Ronald Acuna Jr. He had three hits, including an infield-single on a routine ground ball short in the first inning. He later homered to even the game, 6-6.
Acuna had a total of nine hits in the three-game series, the most for him over a period of three games in his young career. But it won’t make headlines as the replay challenge was central to an early season fight between divisional enemies.
“They said there wasn’t enough evidence, but there were five different angles,” said an incredulous Smyly. ‘It is obvious. He didn’t touch the plate. ‘