The new collective bargaining agreement (CBA) brought along quite a few changes -- free-agent compensation rankings, caps on amateur spending, the hilarious competitive balance draft -- but one of the parts that almost no one complained about was an informal commitment to expanded instant replay.
Expanded Instant Replay Shelved For 2012
Well, about that. From the Associated Press:
Baseball had hoped to increase video reviews this season to include trapped balls, fair-or-foul calls down the lines and fan interference all around the ballpark.
The additional replay required the approval of MLB and the unions representing the umpires and the players. MLB executive Rob Manfred told The Associated Press on Tuesday that all three sides weren’t able to come up with an agreement.Umpires were understandably reluctant to move the game one step closer to the eventual robot revolution, in which artificial intelligence rules and umpires are superfluous. More than that, though, it was probably just a total logistical mess for three different (and obstinate) parties to agree on anything in time for the the season. It was a victory to get the CBA ratified before a work stoppage; let’s not get greedy.
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Well, a little greedy would be OK. You’ll certainly think of this decision the first time your team gets hosed on a blown foul call, at least.
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