Should baseball institute instant replay for disputed calls on the field? The rash of missed or disputed home run calls this week has only intensified the argument for bringing baseball into the twenty-first century and more in-line with its football and hockey brethren. It isn’t a question of the abilities of the crew in blue; it takes unparalleled focus to handle an intense nine-inning contest that may last well over three hours. More so, the sole purpose would be to give umpires a fifth, unbiased view of the play to ensure that there would be little doubt left on the field.

Former Boston outfielder Gabe Kapler may be one major league player in favor of replay, as it may have added another home run to his career total if the technology was in use three years ago. Back on 10 August 2005, in an eventual 16-5 laugher over the Texas Rangers at Fenway Park, Kapler launched a pitch off Kenny Rogers towards the Monster Seats on top of the Green Monster. The ball hit the top of the wall above the home run line, bounced on the small ledge protruding from the wall, and then fell back into play as the crowd went crazy. However, third baseman Derryl Cousins ruled that the ball had not cleared the line and Kapler ended up standing on second. Arguments from the Red Sox bench did nothing except to get Trot Nixon, who was on the disabled list for Boston at the time, ejected from the game.

Baseball would be best served to follow a simple system that limits reviews only to select plays, like home runs and close plays at the plate; replays would not be instituted for balls and strikes. As in football, each team would be given two opportunities to ask for a video replay; for extra inning games, each team would be given an additional chance to call for a review. The purpose for the replay would be announced to the crowd and either the home plate umpire or the crew chief would have the responsibility of making the final call within a given time frame.

Will Bud Selig, the owners, and the players eventually reach an agreement to institute such a system? Most likely, there will be a few more on-field injustices to players and teams and unjust criticism levied on umpires before the obvious conclusion is reached.

Tags: Fenway Park, Gabe Kapler, Trot Nixon

After 13 seasons with the Red Sox organization, free agent outfielder Trot Nixon, who was not offered arbitration by the team in December, signed a one-year deal worth $3 million to start fresh in Cleveland and will wear number 33 with the Indians. Drafted out of high school by the Red Sox in 1993, Nixon was known for his hard-nose style of play, noted by the batting helmet he often wore that was covered in dirt and pine tar; although not as flashy as some of his teammates, he earned the respect of the Boston faithful and the distinction of being one of the team’s original “Dirt Dogs.”

After two quick cups of coffee, his first full season with the Red Sox came in 1999; early on, it appeared as though he would return to the minors when he started out of the gate barely hitting above .100. However, he recovered well enough to finish with a .270 batting average, 15 home runs, and 52 RBI. In ten seasons with Boston, Nixon batted .278, hit 133 home runs, and drove in 523 runs while managing a .366 on-base percentage. He also became a master of Fenway’s often-tricky right field and managed a .984 fielding percentage in that position for most of his time in Boston.

Among his highlights with the Red Sox included a two-run home run in the top of the ninth at Yankee Stadium on 30 May 2000 in a duel between then-teammate Pedro Martinez and ex-Red Sox pitcher Roger Clemens; those two runs were the difference in an eventual 2-0 win for Boston. He also drove home the final two runs for Boston in the deciding Game Four of the 2004 World Series on a two-out double off the right field wall at Busch Stadium in St. Louis in the top of the third inning to give Boston a 3-0 lead. Those also proved to be the last runs scored by either team in that game as the Red Sox swept the Cardinals for the team’s first championship title in 86 years. For the series, Nixon batted .357 and drove in three runs after spending most of the regular season nursing injuries.

With Boston expected to announce the signing of outfielder J.D. Drew in the near future, Nixon’s departure was not unexpected, given that he would likely end up sharing a bench role with Wily Mo Pena, eight years his junior and also seen as a back-up first baseman to Kevin Youkilis.

Tags: Boston Red Sox, J.D. Drew, Kevin Youkilis, Trot Nixon, Wily Mo Pena