Game 3 of the 2013 World Series will forever be debated. Was there interference, or was there not interference? Should the umpire have called it in that situation, or should he have let it slide?
What is definite is that the Red Sox now find themselves in a non-ideal scenario down 2-1 with two games remaining in St. Louis before the series shifts back to Fenway Park, if necessary.
Even before the obstruction call, the Red Sox suffered from poor managing. John Farrell had an opportunity to pull the double switch and have a hitter bat for relief pitcher Brandon Workman and then bring in another pitcher, most likely Koji Uehara, to pitch in the bottom of the ninth inning.
Sox fans are also beginning to scratch their heads about why Farrell continues to start shortstop Stephen Drew. Drew has shown absolutely nothing offensively and continues to put in bad at-bats that do not help the team move runners or have any semblance of productivity.
Farrell is starting to feel the pressure to possibly put Xander Bogaerts at shortstop, and start Will Middlebrooks at third to help mix up the lineup and get the struggling Drew on the bench. If Boston is going to find a way to win the World Series, they need better managing from their skipper.
In the bottom of the ninth inning, the Sox found themselves in a 4-4 tie with runners on second and third and one out. Cardinals outfielder Jon Jay took a Uehara splitter up the middle. Dustin Pedroia made a diving stop to keep the ball in the infield, and gunned it home to get the out at the plate, which is where the trouble began.
Red Sox catcher Jarrod Saltalamacchia decided to try to get the runner out at third instead of simply holding onto the ball, a complete misjudgment on his part as baseball players are taught at a young age to simply hold the ball and not make errors that lead to easy runs.
The throw was made, however, and the hobbled Allen Craig got tangled up with Middlebrooks as the ball soared into left field. Good heads-up defense led to the ball being quickly relayed back to home, where it appeared that Saltalamacchia laid down the tag in time to end the inning.
As it turns out, that would not be the case.
Obstruction was called on Middlebrooks, which allowed Craig to score despite Salty’s tag. Players ran to the umpire to plead their case, but it was all for naught as the play was final and the game was over.
Major League Baseball is standing behind their umpires in saying that was the right call, but the play is still highly controversial. I challenge anyone to recall the last time a walk-off occurred because of an obstruction call.
The major point in this case is that a call like that should not end a game of that magnitude. The umpires are directly altering the course of this series with a call like that. If there was no obstruction called, I don’t think there would have been a large outcry from the St. Louis Cardinals about the no call.
This World Series is now altered forever. I’m not saying that the Red Sox would have won the game, but they clearly lost it because of a horrible call from bad officiating. The major sports need to have officials stop altering games on calls that are vague and highly subjective. Middlebrooks should have had to tackle Craig to the ground to justify that call, but instead he merely tried to get off the ground and got caught up with the baserunner.
If Boston ends up going on to lose this series, the team and fans alike will have a very bad taste in their mouth over the offseason because of the umpires’ decision in a pivotal moment in Game 3.
It’s one thing to lose to a better team, but it is something completely different to lose due to poor officiating. Although adversity is something this Red Sox team is not unfamiliar with, they face a lot of it as they try to climb their way back into this series and bring another championship banner to Yawkey Way.