Umpire Tim Welke blew a call so badly in the Dodgers-Rockies game on Wednesday that it’s almost comical to see how much he missed it.
Dodgers infielder Jerry Hairston Jr. grounded a ball to Rockies third baseman Chris Nelson who made a diving stop and threw across the diamond in the top of the 6th. His throw pulled Todd Helton a couple feet off the first base bag, yet Welke gave the Rockies the call to end the inning.
As you can see in the image on the right, Welke isn’t even in position to see the bag. It was just an awful, awful call all the way around. What’s almost worse than the missed call is that none of the other umpires overruled him.
If this isn’t a great example for the need for expanded use of instant replay, I don’t know what is. Easily the worst call since Jerry Meals last year.
Below is video of the play:
