Major League Baseball announced today that the appeal filed by Cleveland Indians Manager Eric Wedge regarding the game between the Baltimore Orioles and the Cleveland Indians on Saturday, April 28th, was not upheld. The league office gave the following explanation:
“Based on our review of the facts, it has been determined that the home plate umpire was in error when he waved off the run that crossed the plate prior to the third out of the third inning. Further review finds that the Baltimore management team was within their rights to appeal the run to the umpire crew two innings later, that they were not under a time constraint to appeal before the beginning of the next half inning, and that they were within their rights to file a formal protest of the game at any point during the progress of said game. Additionally, the umpires were within their rights to add the run in question on to the scoreboard, despite the fact that it was three innings later in the game.”
The league also reported that they have begun to review prior games where questionable calls or other “arbitrary errors” might have taken place. The following reversal will also affect the Cleveland Indians:
“On Friday, April 6th, during the much publicized snowed-out home opener in Cleveland, a pitch by pitch review of that game found that a member of the Cleveland Indians swung at and made contact with a large baseball sized snow ball instead of an official Major League Baseball. This action caused a run to score and gave an unfair advantage to the Cleveland Indians and altered the sequence of events that followed. Because of this inappropriate rules violation, the game will be forfeited and a score of 5 to 0 in favor of the Seattle Mariners will be lodged. Furthermore, because of this violation, the remaining three other games that could not be played that weekend due to the severe Cleveland weather will also be forfeited and awarded to the Mariners, thus making the scheduling of those make-up games unnecessary. The official scorer will add 4 wins to the Mariners and 4 losses to the Indians immediately.”
Additionally, the outcome of the 1920 World Series will be changed and the championship will be taken from the Cleveland Indians and given to the Brooklyn Robins (who later became the Dodgers). In reviewing pictures on tattered baseball cards and artists’ renderings, it appears that Bill Wambsganss’ foot did not make contact with second base for the second out of the storied World Series triple play in game 5.
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