The Cubs fell to the Diamondbacks on Saturday by a score of 6-2, with the game ending on a controversial note. With two on and two out in the bottom of the ninth, Ben Zobrist of the Cubs was punched out by plate ump Mark Wegner on a breaking ball that looked quite a bit low ...
That didn't look like a strike, and Zobrist being upset is certainly understandable. Zobrist is an even-keel sort, but Wegner's call stuck in his craw to the extent that Zobrist is apparently ready for drastic change. Via ESPN's Jesse Rogers, here's what Zobrist had to say afterward:
"If we want to change something like that, we're going to have an electronic strike zone because human beings are going to make mistakes. Tough situation for that to happen, but he's probably going to look at it and not be too happy with himself.
"That's something the league is going to have to look at, when you start ending games and games turn on one pitch like that. It's an unfortunate situation, and now that we have the technology, we should probably get it right."
You're hearing more and more of this sort of thing. With modern day velocity levels and late movement, it's probably not humanly possible to call pitches as accurately as an automated zone would. There's a lot of discussion and negotiation and debate to be had before we take such a step, but increasingly it appears that there's going to be a sturdy consensus among players. We're not there yet, but that's the direction in which we're headed.
