No 66th yet
NL turns down Mac's appeal of HR ruling
Posted: Monday September 21, 1998 10:03 PM
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Rule 9.02 (a): "Any umpire's decision which involves judgment, such as, but not limited to, whether a batted ball is fair or foul, whether a pitch is a strike or a ball, or whether a runner is safe or out, is final."
AP |
NEW YORK (AP) -- Mark McGwire's
home run total is still at 65.
The National League on Monday turned down the St. Louis Cardinals'
request to reverse an umpire's ruling on a disputed double by McGwire a day
earlier and award him a 66th home run.
NL president Len Coleman telephoned Cardinals general manager Walt
Jocketty and told him umpire Bob Davidson's call Sunday would not be
reviewed.
"They said they were not going to look into it because it was a call
involving judgment, not one involving an interpretation of the rules,"
Cardinals spokesman Brian Bartow said. "They said the umpire's call would
stand."
McGwire extended his home run record by hitting his 65th home run Sunday
in the first inning at Milwaukee. In the fifth, he hit a line drive to
left-center field that wound up in the seats, but Davidson ruled that a fan
reached over the wall to pull it in.
Davidson, the second-base umpire, stopped McGwire at second base with a
double.
"When I saw it, the fan was leaning over and the ball hit him below the
yellow line. So that's why I called it a ground-rule double," said
Davidson, a member of the NL staff since 1983.
After the game, which St. Louis won 11-6, Cardinals manager Tony La
Russa said the team asked the NL to review the call. La Russa said that
since McGwire wound up scoring, changing the ruling would not affect the
outcome.
"The home run chase has drawn attention all over the world," La Russa
said. "Most importantly, the way the inning played out, it didn't make any
difference."
Both McGwire and the fan, who was thrown out of County Stadium and fined
$518 for trespassing, said they thought it was a home run.
Rule 9.02 (a) of the Official Baseball Rules states: "Any umpire's
decision which involves judgment, such as, but not limited to, whether a
batted ball is fair or foul, whether a pitch is a strike or a ball, or
whether a runner is safe or out, is final."
McGwire leads Sammy Sosa of the
Chicago Cubs by two in
the home run race. The Cardinals, who have six games left, and the Cubs,
who have five remaining, were idle Monday.
Copyright 2003 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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