Terry Francona Reacts To Controversial Play At The Plate In Ending Of Guardians-Nationals

Cleveland Guardians manager, Terry Francona, believes plays at the plate put the catcher at a disadvantage when they go to replay.

The turning point of the Cleveland Guardians loss to the Washington Nationals came in the eighth inning when the Nats were able to tie up the game after a sacrifice fly.

However, it wasn't as simple as that. 

Myles Straw caught the ball in center field and played it perfectly. He threw a flawless throw home which Mike Zunino caught and tagged the runner out.

The Nationals decided they wanted to have another look and challenged the play at the plate. The call was overturned and Zunino was called for blocking the plate which he clearly was not happy with. 

Here is the play in question:

The Nationals tie the game after replay review determined Mike Zunino blocked home plate on this play pic.twitter.com/HqV3yDZWMe

— Casey Drottar (@CDrottar19) April 16, 2023

It was definitely close, there's no question about that. Whenever there's a bang-bang play such as this one, it comes down to whether there's enough evidence to overturn the call. Apparently, in this situation, there was and the runner was safe which tied the game.

Terry Francona understood the call but still thinks it's a tough one to make. This is what he said following the game:

"I understand why they do it. I still think it puts the catcher in a tough spot. The game is going fast. But when you slow it down I don't think (Zunino's) contention is as soon as he saw the hop, he maneuvers to make the play and I really understand that. I don't think when you slow it down that is fair to the player." 

Tito makes a good point. The play looks one way live, but when it's slowed down is all about splitting hairs. It was an unfortunate call for the Guardians that they were on the wrong end of. 

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