NL Won’t Reverse Ruling on McGwire

Mark McGwire’s home run total is still 65.

The National League on Monday turned down the St. Louis Cardinals’ request to reverse an umpire’s ruling on a disputed double by McGwire a day earlier and award him a 66th home run.

NL President Len Coleman telephoned Cardinals General Manager Walt Jocketty and told him umpire Bob Davidson’s call Sunday would not be reviewed.

“They said they were not going to look into it because it was a call involving judgment, not one involving an interpretation of the rules,” Cardinal spokesman Brian Bartow said. “They said the umpire’s call would stand.”

McGwire extended his home run record by hitting his 65th home run Sunday in the first inning at Milwaukee. In the fifth, he hit a line drive to left-center field that wound up in the seats, but Davidson ruled that a fan reached over the wall to pull it in.

Davidson, the second-base umpire, stopped McGwire at second base with a double.

“When I saw it, the fan was leaning over and the ball hit him below the yellow line. So that’s why I called it a ground-rule double,” said Davidson, a member of the NL staff since 1983.

After the game, which St. Louis won 11-6, Cardinals Manager Tony La Russa said the team asked the NL to review the call. La Russa said that since McGwire wound up scoring, changing the ruling would not affect the outcome.

“The home run chase has drawn attention all over the world,” La Russa said. “Most importantly, the way the inning played out, it didn’t make any difference.”

Both McGwire and the fan, who was thrown out of County Stadium and fined $518 for trespassing, said they thought it was a home run.

Rule 9.02 (a) of the Official Baseball Rules states: “Any umpire’s decision which involves judgment, such as, but not limited to, whether a batted ball is fair or foul, whether a pitch is a strike or a ball, or whether a runner is safe or out, is final.”

McGwire leads Sammy Sosa of the Chicago Cubs by two home runs in their race to finish the season as the all-time leader. The Cardinals, who have six games left, and the Cubs, who have five remaining, were idle Monday.