Phillies not content with knowing umps blew replay vs. Rays

In the seventh inning of the Phillies' 10-4 loss to the Rays on Wednesday night at Tropicana Field, an umpiring crew led by chief Gary Cederstrom used instant replay to determine whether a fan had interfered with a ground-rule double by Pat Burrell. Had replay determined that a fan interfered with the ball, baserunner Carl Crawford would have been awarded home instead of having to stop at third.

While the review ultimately worked in the Phillies' favor, keeping Crawford at third base after no fan interference was found, the mere fact that replay was used on a seemingly innocuous play in a game they trailed by six runs angered the Phillies.

Turns out, their anger was justified.

Yesterday, Major League Baseball informed Cederstrom that his crew had erred in using replay. By rule, replay is supposed to be used only on potential home-runs involving boundary calls (whether the ball is fair or foul; whether the ball cleared the wall; whether a fan interfered with the ball).

"I'm sorry about the confusion that was raised," Cederstrom told the Associated Press yesterday, reading from a prepared statement. "As you know, instant replay is to be used only in boundary or fair-foul calls involving home runs or potential home runs. I regret the error that we had."

That isn't enough to satisfy the Phillies, who are still angry that a potential game-winning home run by Greg Dobbs against the Red Sox on June 12 was not reviewed. Dobbs' shot came with two on in the bottom of the 11th of a game the Phillies wound up losing, 5-2, in the 13th. It sailed either over or just to the right of the foul pole in rightfield. First-base umpire Tim Joyce ruled it was foul, and denied Manuel's request to have the play reviewed, saying he was 100 percent certain of his call.

Dobbs, who played first base against the Rays on Thursday night, immediately thought of his blast against the Red Sox when Cederstrom elected to review the ground-rule double.

"I think [it was going through] all of our minds," said Dobbs, who remains convinced that his hit left the field of play in fair territory. "Why would they consider reviewing that play when the game is where it's at, when 2 weeks earlier we couldn't even get a truly game-changing play [reviewed] that was a lot closer and, in my eyes, a lot more questionable, and a lot more impactful on the outcome of the game. Why couldn't we get that?"

Bastardo likely out

 

The Phillies won't know more about Antonio Bastardo's shoulder strain until the lefthander visits team doctor Michael Ciccotti on Monday. But general manager Ruben Amaro Jr. confirmed yesterday that Bastardo would "likely" miss his next start, tentatively scheduled for Wednesday. Bastardo left Thursday's game with two outs in the fourth inning after experiencing what he described as "tightness" in his throwing shoulder. He told reporters after the game that he had felt the tightness the day before, and that it worsened throughout his start, when he allowed six runs in 3 2/3 innings.

The Phillies could conceivably go without a fifth starter and keep the rest of the rotation on normal rest until July 4, thanks to a day off on Monday. But they do have options in the minors. Assistant general manager Benny Looper watched righthander Carlos Carrasco, the organization's top prospect who has had an up-and-down season, pitch at Triple A Lehigh Valley last night. Righthander Andrew Carpenter, who allowed five runs in 4 1/3 innings of a win over the Nationals on May 16, has pitched very well since returning to the minors. He is 5-1 with a 1.76 ERA in his last seven starts, the most recent of which was a six-inning effort on Sunday in which he allowed three earned runs.

Righthander Kyle Drabek, the organization's fastest-rising pitching prospect, allowed three runs and struck out nine in 7 1/3 innings Thursday night and has a 2.43 ERA in five starts at Double A Reading, but it is highly unlikely that the Phillies would call on the 21-year-old now.

Correction

 

A correction on a brief item from yesterday: The dog tag featuring a replica World Series ring fashioned for Pat Burrell's dog, Elvis, was a gift from the Phillies to their former slugger. And the diamonds? Not real. *