The Craziest Moments In Detroit Sports History
“He’s out- No! He’s safe!… He is safe at first base!”
I said at the top that I wouldn’t be including controversial officiating decisions. This is the exception due to two unprecedented elements. One, although the call cost a player a significant milestone that had little to do with the final score and two, the call was not controversial, it was simply incorrect, and the official who made the call admitted as much.
On June 2, 2010, the Detroit Tigers were 27-25 and hosted the 19-32 Cleveland Indians. Tigers’ right-hander Armando Galarraga got the start and pitched through the first inning without surrendering a baserunner. Miguel Cabrera‘s home run in the second gave the Tigers a 1-0 lead and Galarraga continued to pitch right through the Cleveland order, fanning 24 straight batters without conceding a base heading into the middle of the eighth.
Magglio Ordóñez drove in two runs on a single to build a 3-0 lead for the Tigers going into the final inning. Mark Grudzielanek hit a Galarraga pitch deep to center, but Detroit outfielder Austin Jackson tracked it down and made a difficult catch in stride to keep Galarraga’s perfect game alive. After Cleveland’s Mike Redmond grounded out for the second out of the inning, Galarraga faced Jason Donald for the final out of a perfect game.
In the days before official replay review, the tape confirmed that Galarraga had indeed tagged the bag before Donald and that Donald should have been ruled out
Donald made contact on the 1-1 pitch, grounding it to the right. Cabrera scooped up the ball and threw it to Galarraga, who ran over to cover first. Galarraga caught the ball and tapped the bag with his right foot as Donald approached the base. First-base umpire Jim Joyce called Donald safe at first.
In the days before official replay review, the tape confirmed that Galarraga had indeed tagged the bag before Donald and that Donald should have been ruled out, but there was nothing that could be done about it and Donald remained safe at first, denying Galarraga his perfect game.
The Tigers retired the next batter and won the game, 3-0, although the Fox Sports Detroit play-by-play announcer said that he had “never been this disappointed after a Tigers’ win.”
Afterward, Galarraga was very gracious, saying that Joyce probably felt worse about the play than he did and that “nobody’s perfect.” Joyce recognized the mistake afterward and was very apologetic. “I just cost the kid a perfect game,” he said, “I thought he beat the throw. I was convinced he beat the throw until I (saw) the replay. It was the biggest call of my career.”
At the Tigers’ next game the next day, Galarraga met Joyce on the field and patted him on the shoulder as Joyce’s eyes welled up with tears. Joyce, who is one of baseball’s most respected umpires, was widely praised for admitting his error, as was Galarraga for accepting Joyce’s apology.
In the days that followed, there was some controversy over whether or not MLB commissioner Bud Selig would or should overrule Joyce’s call and award Galarraga a perfect game. Selig opted not to do so, which prompted some ire, although most players agreed that the game ought to remain as originally scored. The play prompted some calls for an increase of the use of instant replay in baseball, which took place in 2014.