Baseball Visits Twilight Zone at the Pan American Games

This is what happens when you take the national pastime international, when you export the American game and turn it over to a bunch of officious foreigners wearing shiny badges with intentions of poking at it, tinkering with it and--heaven help us all--”interpreting” it.

What happens is a Pan American Games baseball matchup between the United States and Canada umpired by “referees,” featuring “designer hitters” and 15-minute impromptu powwows by the referees when one of the “coaches”--Americans know them as managers--decides to protest a game after he is forced to remove a pitcher for visiting him on the mound for the second time in extra innings.

How’s that again?

“You’re going to have to ask one of these officials,” said U.S. Coach/Manager Buddy Bell as he pulled off his cap and dragged his fingers through his hair. “I’m so confused.”

Bell’s Canadian counterpart, Ernie Whitt, sat in front of a copy of the International Baseball Assn. rule book trying to make sense of the IBA visits-to-the-mound-rule and how he thought he had it all figured out, to the point of stockpiling visits for use in the 11th inning and beyond, if necessary.

“I was trying to be smart,” Whitt said. “But I guess I was being stupid.”

About all anyone could agree upon after Monday’s 11-inning, 4 1/2-hour brain teaser at CanWest Global Park was that Canada had defeated Team USA, 7-6, on a two-out, bases-loaded pop fly that landed between two more baffled Americans, shortstop Travis Dawkins and left fielder Shawn Gilbert.

Earlier, in the top of the 11th, play had been stopped for 35 minutes after Whitt was cited for violating the trips-to-the-mound rule, resulting in an animated and agonizing debate between the Canadian manager and four umpires from Cuba, Guatemala, Venezuela and Brazil. Before some sort of resolution had been forged:

* Whitt protested the game, requiring him to borrow $200 from the Canadian team leader on the spot to fund an official appeal to the IBA.

* Whitt was ejected for voicing his protest in terms that are universally understood.

* The umpiring crew left the field and convened with IBA officials in a small room behind home plate for 15 minutes, an immediate hearing as to the validity of Whitt’s appeal.

Finally, after more than half an hour, with players from both teams kicking back in their respective dugouts, the umpires emerged with a verdict:

Protest rejected, game on.

At the time, the United States was holding a 6-3 lead, courtesy of a run-scoring double by Adam Kennedy and a two-run homer just inside the right-field foul pole by Jason Hardtke in the top of the 11th inning.

There, time stood still after Whitt walked out to the mound to talk to pitcher Chad Ricketts, turned to head back to the dugout and was told by home-plate umpire Nelson Diaz of Cuba that he had made too many visits in extra innings and would have to pull Ricketts from the game.

The IBA rule, as deciphered by a Pan-Am Games official during a postgame media briefing, allows for three visits to the mound--visits to talk with the pitcher, not to remove him--during the first nine innings, then one visit for every three innings of extra innings played.

Whitt had not made one of these “free visits” during the first nine innings and figured “I still had three to burn” after he walked to the mound to talk with Ricketts in the top of the 10th.

Not so, Whitt was rudely informed after visiting Ricketts again an inning later. Diaz contended that none of the visits Whitt thought he had stockpiled for extra innings would carry over into extra innings--and that he had exhausted his quota with the first visit to Ricketts in the top of the 10th.

“It says ‘per game,’ ” Whitt said in the interview room, still fuming as he pointed at the rule book. “As far as I know, the game was still going on.”

As soon as it was announced that Canada was protesting the game, the umpires immediately broke to rule on the protest. Again, this was not the American way, when the game is waved on, play continues and the appeal is heard later. No, this was the IBA insta-appeal--requiring Whitt to fork over a $200 processing fee before the umpires and IBA officials disappeared under the stands for the official hearing.

“I’ve spent $200 quicker on craps tables than I did today,” Whitt quipped.

All for naught, as decided by the IBA.

And rather unnecessary, as determined by Stubby Clapp’s game-winning blooper in the bottom of the 11th.

Still, Whitt said he was planning to appeal again.

“I want to get that $200 back and put it where it belongs,” he said. “On the craps table.”