Over the last few days the sports blogosphere has been all sorts of abuzz over a quote in Sports Illustrated by former Mariners catcher Dave Valle. In an article on Randy Johnson, Valle is quoted as saying that an umpire called the pitches for Johnson during a 1993 game.
This shocking revelation was first brought to my attention by blogger OMDQ on the blog One More Dying Quail. OMDQ analyzed all of Johnson's '93 starts, found out who umpired, did a few hypothetical guesses and determined that the most logical candidates are either umpires Tim Welke or Ed Hickox. To OMDQ's credit, he is a huge baseball fan who I believe has even worked at the Hall of Fame.
The next day, the same revelation was blogged about on Deadspin. There, blogger Tommy Craggs found the same list of umpires as OMDQ, but came up with different logical conclusions. Craggs used umpire Jim McKean's background of calling no-hitters as evidence that perhaps he was the likely culprit.
So who is right? Is it the wisdom of the popular Deadspin? Or the insightful pondering of OMDQ? Or could Valle be taking the sports world for a ride?
Whatever the truth, I'll give Valle credit, he has created a new baseball myth. However, unlike the Babe's called shot or the antics of Leo Durocher or the exaggerated abilities of the Negro League legends, Valle's story does nothing but hurt the game. By associating an umpire with the direct actions of a player, Valle calls into question the credibility of those in authority of the national pastime. This isn't like an umpire duking it out with an annoying fan after the game or even throwing down with Ty Cobb after the Georgia Peach didn't like a few calls. This is an impartial arbitrator crossing the line and influencing the outcome of a game. And in the wake of crooked NBA ref Tim Donaghy and the still open scar of baseball's own steroid era, a baseball myth that calls into question the sanctity of the game is the last thing the sport needs.
So to Dave Valle and the unknown ump, thanks for nothing.
