The Los Angeles Angels lost a marathon game to the Baltimore Orioles on Thursday night, and Brad Ausmus believes a bad call prevented his team from walking off with the win in the 15th inning.
With the Angels trailing 8-6 in the bottom of the 15th, Mike Trout belted a ball down the left field line that scored two runs with ease. David Fletcher tried to score all the way from first to give the Angels the win, but he was thrown out at home plate. Here’s a video of the play:
Angels challenge call that David Fletcher is out at home plate in the 15th; call stands, runner is out. Powered by @Mitel. pic.twitter.com/DEjunlcdhm
— MLB Replays (@MLBReplays) July 26, 2019
It was hard to tell in real time whether Fletcher’s hand hit home plate before the tag, but some replay angles appeared to show he was safe.
.@MLB I don’t care who wins this game, but David Fletcher was safe and I’m watching this from my couch. Your Replay Guy in NY is clearly asleep. DM if you need a West Coast Replay Guy. pic.twitter.com/zlyp70dd7v
— Francis in Glendale (@TFPWillEat) July 26, 2019
The call on the field stood, and the Orioles went on to win. After the game, Ausmus admitted the bang-bang play was tough for home plate umpire Tony Randazzo to get right, but the Angels manager felt there was enough video evidence to overturn the call.
“His hand was in there before the glove hit him in the chest,” Ausmus told reporters. “It was a tough call for Tony Randazzo, but I think New York missed it.”
Like in the NFL, MLB will always stick with the call on the field in the absence of clear evidence that it should be overturned. Ausmus believes that evidence existed.
Because the call stood, an Orioles player was able to make history the following inning. It’s amazing how many things one controversial play can change.
