MLB Needs NBA-Style Mandatory Review Policy

Thanks to a six run seventh inning Sunday afternoon, the Phillies managed to salvage one game from their home interleague series with the Red Sox.

Might it have been more?

If Greg Dobbs’ extra inning blast Saturday night is called fair, the Phils take two out of three. Of course, the ball was called foul and what’s done is done.

However, it did get us to thinking: why have replays available for such situations if they’re not going to be used? It should be noted that umpire Jim Joyce exhibited a great amount of class in the way he dealt with his call’s aftermath – from his reassuring of Charlie Manuel on the field to his forthright comments to the media afterward.

Joyce repeated with certitude that he saw the ball.

With all due respect, Joyce was missing the point. And it’s not his fault, either.

Watching more non-76ers NBA basketball than we have in years made us think that an NBA-style mandatory replay system might be in the best interest of MLB, too. The NBA mandates that a shot made at the end of a quarter – even if it is somewhat obvious that the shot was released prior to the buzzer – be reviewed to ensure its validity. Everyone involved knows the drill, accepts it as part of the game, and moves on.

Where is the harm in MLB adopting that same standard for foul/fair pole home runs?

It wouldn’t be a waste of time, as the Daily News’ Rich Hofmann suggests. Again, do it the way the NBA does it, with a maximum of a few minutes passing by.

It’s a small price to pay to make sure the right call is made.