[Akileese]

So, this year there have been a slew of blown calls, but now we're seeing horribly blown calls by the home plate umpire. Perfect example is tonight between the Sox and Yanks, Wang gets a 3-1 fastball that's easily 6-8 inches outside and gets the strike call. Now, this is the kind of call you expect a legitimate veteran pincher to get if A) His catcher frames it well, B) Veteran pitchers get those calls every now and then.

Biggest problem is, it wasn't framed, and Wang is NOT a veteran pitcher. I saw this a number of times this weekend. This is not just umpires giving calls to pitchers, their strike zones are becoming horribly inconsistent. This causes a number of issues because now at least for the next 1-1.5 innings, the hitters are swinging at awful pitches because they feel the strike zone is too wide. Meanwhile, the opposing pitcher only needs one pitch to not go his way and next thing you know, the flood gates opened (happened to Wakefield tonight but only for two innings, veteran pitchers tend to get less flustered by this, but for a younger guy, it could be horribly damaging to him).

Well, I watch a ton of baseball. It's my favorite sport and has been since I was a kid. This is a problem that's been emerging in every league, but I honestly feel that baseball umpire's control a game more than in any other sport. With one or two calls, they can send a team into a frenzy of poor pitches and swings. The big thing about the call tonight is, Boston was down 2-0 and it would of made it 2-1 with Ortiz coming up with the bases loaded. Instead Youkie struck out.

I don't know how this problem can be fixed, but baseball needs to do something about it. The NBA and NFL constantly reviews their officials and even fines them for poor play, maybe it's time baseball does the same.