SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — A play at home plate in a game between San Diego and San Francisco was overturned on review Wednesday night, the second straight day a disputed review had a significant impact on the outcome of a game.
In the fifth inning at Oracle Park in San Francisco, Blake Sabol of the Giants appeared to be thrown out sliding into home by a strong throw by Padres outfielder Fernando Tatis Jr. on Joc Pederson’s two-out single to right.
Sabol was initially ruled out, but the call was changed following a lengthy review when umpires cited San Diego catcher Gary Sanchez for blocking the plate. Frustrated Padres manager Bob Melvin came out to argue, but was unsuccessful.
“The throw took (Sanchez) up the line,” Melvin said. “Based on where he started, it looked like they showed the replay from when the throw was already on the way, and as a catcher, you have to have some feel for that. You’ve got to also understand the impact and where the runner was.
“To me, it was just one of the worst calls I’ve seen this year.”
Sabol knew quickly that something was amiss on the play,
“I was running as hard as I could,” Sabol said. “I was trying to avoid a collision there. I feel like I didn’t even have a chance to touch (the plate). That was a big, big challenge for us.”
Mike Yastrzemski followed Pederson’s hit with an RBI liner up the middle, then J.D. Davis lashed a single to right center for a four-run lead in a game eventually won by the Giants 4-2.
A night earlier, Texas Rangers manager Bruce Bochy was ejected after a call at the plate was overturned, because catcher Jonah Heim was ruled to have blocked the plate illegally.
Zach Remillard singled in Elvis Andrus with the go-ahead run on a play that was overturned by video review. Andrus was initially called out at the plate…