Teletopez Posted April 11, 2010 Report Share Posted April 11, 2010 Well this news is a couple days old, but it's still a hot topic. Link Derek Jeter: "What's pathetic or embarrassing about it? Ask (West) what's embarrassing about it. I mean, if the game's 20 minutes shorter, it's not embarrassing? Are the fans complaining? Are the sponsors complaining? Who's complaining?'' Joe Girardi: "I know baseball is trying to speed up the game, but . . .we're not gonna ask our hitters to change their approach to speed up the game. We're just not gonna do it. We're trying to win ballgames here, not see how fast we can play 'em.''Link To call the Yankees and Red Sox, two of the best teams in baseball, 'pathetic' and 'embarrassing,' that's just ridiculous,'' Pedroia said while sitting in the dugout before Friday night's game against the Royals. "If he doesn't want to do Red Sox and Yankee games, he should tell the umpires' union. Then when we're in the World Series, he'll be out of that assignment, too.'' "What he doesn't understand is that when we don't do well in these games against the Yankees, we get killed,'' Pedroia said. "So if I'm going to take a deep breath and focus before I get in the box, I'm going to do it. "If he has places to go, let him do something else,'' Rivera told the New York Post. "What does he want us [the players] to do, swing at balls? ... We don't want to play four-hour games, but that's what it takes. We respect and love the fans and do what we have to do, and that's play our game." "Obviously, I think I need to be somewhat careful is the right word, selective,'' Francona said. "I mean, I think it kind of surprised all of us. When you have somebody in charge of running the game without bias, and then you hear those comments coming out pretty strong, it probably worries you a little bit.''Link What does being two of the best teams in baseball have anything to do with the speed of the game? Maybe West should consider the offensive battles and pitching battles that these teams have just about every game, the amount of pitches several batters take, and the number of pitching changes that are made. As an umpire, your job is to go out there, calls balls, strikes, and outs, and that's the end of the story. If you don't like the time of the game, then don't ump. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phightins Posted April 11, 2010 Report Share Posted April 11, 2010 (edited) Mixed feelings on this. For starters, Joe West is right about one thing. Pace of game is something that Bud Selig and co. have been concerned with for a while. Yankees-Red Sox games are particularly long, mostly because those teams have probably the two most patient lineups in baseball. I have never seen the problem though. Baseball is beautiful because of the rhythm and pace of it. If a game runs 3 and a half or 4 hours (or longer), who really cares? The only people who have real issues with this are Fox and ESPN because of sponsorship/programming issues that arise when games run longer than the standard 3 hour time slot. If you are a fan and you have a problem with a game occasionally running very long, then honestly I would question your fan-hood. As for the guy saying this....Joe West should just shut his mouth. He is the worst umpire in baseball (actually I'll be generous, he is the 2nd or 3rd worst). He is a hack and nobody is going to take him seriously. Also, if players are not allowed to criticize umpires without getting fined, I think it needs to go both wys. Edited April 11, 2010 by Phightins Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kingfish Posted April 11, 2010 Report Share Posted April 11, 2010 Pedroias comments are absolutely ridiculous. Does he even realize that two AL teams cant play in the World Series? These games do take a long time though. Thats partially because both teams are the two most patient hitting teams in the league. But if the umpires want to cut back on timeouts and keep the game going they have every right to, and they should imo. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NomarFachix Posted April 11, 2010 Report Share Posted April 11, 2010 Pedroias comments are absolutely ridiculous. Does he even realize that two AL teams cant play in the World Series? These games do take a long time though. Thats partially because both teams are the two most patient hitting teams in the league. But if the umpires want to cut back on timeouts and keep the game going they have every right to, and they should imo. Pedroia wasn't talking about them being in the World Series at the same time, he was talking about either of them being there singularly. By saying he didn't want to do Yankees or Red Sox games, he'd be taking himself out of the equation. I think Joe West is just a huge Nancy. Get over it, you have to sit your lazy [expletive] in a crouch for an extra half hour, and you'll do so with a smile on your face, bastard. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phightins Posted April 11, 2010 Report Share Posted April 11, 2010 (edited) http://www.umpirejoewest.com/newjoe.jpg ^^That is actually his album, FYI. Edited April 11, 2010 by Phightins Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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