The Japan Series and the World Series ended within 24 hours of each other. Shortly after the San Francisco Giants outlasted the Kansas City Royals in seven games, the Fukuokoa SoftBank Hawks finished off the Hanshin Tigers in five games, thanks to a 1-0 victory.
The final out of the World Series was recorded on a lazy pop up to third base. The final out of the Japan Series, on the other hand, was a result of runner’s interference. One is slightly more common than the other.
Tsuyoshi Nishioka got in the way of the return throw of a potential 3-2-3 double play in the ninth inning and was ruled to be out of the baseline — a call that seems pretty fair after review.
We can thank God nothing like this happened last night in America’s Heartland. I can’t even imagine how insufferable it would have been to listen to talking heads with a tenuous grasp of baseball rules troll the viewing audience with their intentionally incendiary opinions.
[H/T: Eye on Baseball]