#BuckFiftyADay: Challenging the MLB Replay System

About 25 years ago, I attended Jim Evans Umpiring School on an assignment for Sports Illustrated. I learned a few things. One, umpiring is incredibly hard. Two, umpires hate getting calls wrong. So I have a problem with the replay system that’s being employed in Major League Baseball, not because I don’t think they should be using replay, but because I believe they should let the umpires be in charge of making the calls. I do not like the “challenge system.” Assign one umpire to replays. When a call is close, he will know it needs to be reviewed. He will get on the case and get it right. The challenge system also sets a horrible precedent for baseball at every other level. Kids and coaches and parents should not believe you can “challenge” an umpire as a way of getting a call overturned. Let the umpires call the game.