Upon further review, Angels find out instant replay is not foolproof

Major League Baseball installed instant replay last season to make sure calls are correct, but as was shown in the Angels-Giants game atAT&T Park in San Francisco on Friday night, the system is not foolproof.

With the Angels trailing, 1-0, in the seventh inning, Kole Calhoun led off with a single. David Freese followed with a grounder that Giants third baseman Casey McGehee misplayed.

But the ball caromed right to shortstop Brandon Crawford, who threw to second base for what umpire Doug Eddings ruled was a force out.

Angels Manager Mike Scioscia challenged the call, and replays shown in the stadium and press box showed clearly that Calhoun’s foot hit the bag before the ball reached second baseman Matt Duffy’s glove.

But after instant-replay officials in New York reviewed the play, the call was upheld and Calhoun jogged off the field. The Angels eventually brough in a run in the inning to tie the score, but had the call on Calhoun been overturned, they might have had a bigger rally.

“I don’t think there’s anybody in the world who’s going to see that replay and not think Calhoun was safe,” Scioscia fumed afterward. “That just baffles me. It is 100% obvious that Kole was safe, and that’s the frustrating part about replay.

“I don’t know how that call was not overturned. He was safe. I don’t know where they’re dropping the ball in New York, but it’s something that needs to be worked on. They’re getting the angles, everything we’re seeing. I don’t know how they don’t come to the same conclusion everybody would come to on that play.”