Tap tap tap
Angels 4, Giants 3
When you get rung up on a bad call but you don’t have any challenges left, whose fault is it really?
There’s no question Hunter Wendelstedt took the bat out of Heliot Ramos’s hands. But the Giants can only blame themselves for letting the umpire pants them in the game’s biggest moment.
Grant McCray burned the Giants’ first challenge in the fifth inning, tapping his helmet on a 1-0 pitch. He shook his head as the ABS graphic loaded up, a knowing gesture that the world was about to see what he did. Wrong.
“New rule: You should have to have a batting average before you’re allowed to challenge,” said a brilliant fan behind me.
Willy Adames wasted the final challenge in the ninth on a 3-0 pitch. Yes, if he was right it would’ve brought up the tying run. But when you’re that far ahead in the count you have to be sure. He was. And he was wrong.
Giants hitters have been OK with the ABS system. The numbers are dense and laid out here. But using—and losing—both challenges in no-strike counts? It’s a bad look.
Almost as bad as Ramos furiously tapping his helmet after strike three should’ve been ball three.
Up next: The Giants say this is the first time since 1956 they’ve gone at least 105 games without sweeping a three-game series. Luckily they have plans to change that against the first-place Brewers. It’ll be Tyler Mahle (2-9, 5.31 ERA) against Brandon Sproat (3-5, 5.09 ERA) at 6:45 pm.