John Farrell made it clear a few weeks ago that he’d like to see expanded video replay. He might soon get his wish.
Major League Baseball is planning to implement more video replay in 2014, with managers even having the opportunity to challenge plays deemed reviewable. Farrell thinks it’s a step in the right direction, although there are likely still details to be ironed out.
“Just in general the inclusion of video replay I think is good for the game. I think the game is ready for additional technology to be brought in,” Farrell told reporters in Toronto on Thursday. “I don’t know that any manager wants to argue [calls]. I think everyone wants calls to be accurate and the human element is always going to be involved, but now we have the potential for a system that not only challenges, but hopefully gets a higher percentage correct.”
Daniel Nava also expressed approval of more replay, even though he remains an advocate of the human element, which has long been a sticking point among baseball traditionalists.
“You don’t like to take the human element out of the game. That’s what makes baseball, baseball,” Nava said, according to CSNNE.com. “But if it can help [get] some calls right, then I think everyone’s a fan of that.”
Under the proposed plans, managers would be given three “challenges” per game. They’d have two for the first six innings and one for the seventh inning through the rest of the game. Most calls aside from balls and strikes would be reviewable.
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