RetroSimba

The Cardinals were involved in the first unofficial use of video replay to review an umpire’s call and it resulted in a favorable ruling for them.

On May 31, 1999, National League umpire Frank Pulli used a television replay to determine whether a ball hit by Cliff Floyd of the Marlins was a home run.

At the time, video replay wasn’t permitted to be used by umpires to review calls made on the field. Pulli made the decision to use the technology available because the umpires disagreed on the call and were confused about the ground rules at Pro Player Stadium in Miami.

After seeing the replays on a television camera viewfinder near the Marlins’ dugout, Pulli reversed his call and ruled the ball hit by Floyd didn’t clear the wall. Floyd was given a double, not a home run.

The next day, National League president Leonard Coleman reiterated baseball’s policy against the use of video replays to review calls.

Nearly a decade later, in 2008, big-league baseball reversed its stance and started using video replays to review certain calls.

Varied opinions

The Cardinals-Marlins game was played on Memorial Day afternoon and featured shortstop Edgar Renteria in his first game at Miami since being traded by the Marlins to the Cardinals.

Renteria hit two home runs and scored three runs, leading the Cardinals to a 5-2 victory, but his performance was overshadowed by the replay controversy.

In the fifth inning, with the Cardinals ahead, 4-1, the Marlins had a runner, Alex Gonzalez, on second, with two outs, when Floyd drove a pitch from Kent Bottenfield deep to left-center.

The ball hit near the top of the wall and caromed back onto the field. The wall, extending from left to left-center and topped by a scoreboard, was 33 feet high and nicknamed the teal monster.

Second base umpire Greg Gibson correctly ruled the ball was in play because it hadn’t cleared the wall. Floyd, seeing Gibson’s signal, stopped at second base with a RBI-double, but he and the Marlins argued for a home run, saying the ball hit against a black canvas above the scoreboard.

After hearing their case, crew chief Pulli, umpiring at third, overruled Gibson’s call and declared a home run for Floyd. Pulli’s decision prompted an argument from manager Tony La Russa and the Cardinals.

“It wasn’t even close to going out of the park,” Cardinals left fielder Ray Lankford said to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. “Cliff put on a good act. He’s a damn good salesman.”

Getting it right

The Cardinals made a compelling case and Pulli began to doubt his decision.

“When I first saw the ball, I thought it hit the scoreboard and came back,” Pulli said. “It was called in play. After further discussion with a few of the Marlins, they said something about hitting the black. I got confused with the ground rules.”

After Pulli and home plate umpire Greg Bonin watched a replay, they were convinced Floyd’s ball didn’t clear the wall.

“I sure don’t want to make a habit of it, but at that moment I thought it was the proper thing to do,” Pulli said. “I’m glad we did. We got the call right.”

Said Floyd: “Most guys make history by hitting two grand slams in one inning. I make history by being the first instant replay.” Boxscore

Marlins interim manager Fredi Gonzalez, filling in for an ailing John Boles, protested the game, saying Pulli violated baseball policy by relying on video replay. “You can’t use any electronic devices to determine the outcome of a game,” Gonzalez said.

Palm Beach Post columnist Dave George wrote, “The call was the right one. The way in which it was verified, however, was goofy considering baseball umpires have been conditioned for more than a century to consider any outside second opinion, up to and including a Supreme Court ruling, as the pathetic meddling of an inferior intelligence.”

The Cardinals, of course, supported Pulli.

“There’s a sentence in the rule book that says, ‘Get the play right.’ That’s the rule _ the golden rule of umpiring,” said La Russa.

“If the play had gone against us and was called right, I wouldn’t have complained.”

Knowing right from wrong

Coleman rejected the Marlins’ protest but made it clear umpires shouldn’t use video replay again.

“Use of the video replay is not an acceptable practice,” Coleman said.

Coleman suggested “part of the beauty of baseball is that it is imperfect,” and added, “The integrity of the game requires that judgments be left to on-field personnel. In the course of play, instant replay has no role in Major League Baseball.”

In explaining why he didn’t uphold the Marlins’ protest, Coleman said Pulli’s decision to use video replay was a judgment call that violated a policy, not a rule.

Pulli, 64, was in his 28th season as a major-league umpire. The 1999 season would be his last.

Cardinals coach and former Marlins manager Rene Lachemann said, “A lot of people should look at the intestinal fortitude Frank Pulli had by doing that. I don’t know how many other umpires would do it. Here’s a guy with 28 years of service trying to do something that’s right for the game and now he gets slapped. That’s what bothers me about the game of baseball.”