Better Than Perfect: Umpires Wrong Call, Forgiveness and Sportsmanship

Sports are useless if they do not point us toward something beyond themselves, and teach us how to become better human beings. A great lesson was offered in Detroit through an umpire's crucial mistake. As disappointing as Joyce's call was to this life-long Tiger fan, the beautiful lesson in humility and forgiveness is so much more important than a purely athletic achievement.

P>GRAND RAPIDS, MI--One of the greatest calls ever made by a Major League Baseball umpire occurred June 2nd at Detroit's Comerica Park. It's a shame no television camera was there to record it.

What the cameras did capture has been played and replayed on sports and news networks: Detroit Tigers pitcher Armando Galarraga was one out away from completing a "perfect game," when the Cleveland Indians' Jason Donald hit a ground ball to first baseman Miguel Cabrera for the apparent last out. Galarraga covered first base and took the throw, beating Donald to the bag by a step.

Yet the celebration was suddenly halted by umpire Jim Joyce's outstretched arms, ruling Donald safe despite video evidence to the contrary. With both a perfect game and a no-hitter out the window, Galarraga calmly went back to work, retiring Trevor Crowe to seal a one-hit, 3-0 victory.

The scene that followed was far from a typical ending to a home team victory. As some of his teammates angrily confronted Joyce, Galarraga walked off the field not to cheers he so richly deserved, but to boos directed past him toward the first base umpire.

"One of the worst calls ever" proclaimed a number of news accounts, along with pleas for an expanded use of video replay in officiating. Just one hour after the game ended, a news report indicated a "Fire Jim Joyce" group had been set up on Facebook, with 6000 people already signed on.

Yet in the recesses of the Comerica Park dressing rooms, away from the public eye and ire, the silver lining of this apparent cloud began to shine forth. After viewing a replay, Jim Joyce made the greatest call of his career: he admitted he was wrong, asked to speak with Galarraga, and tearfully embraced the pitcher while offering a heart-felt apology.

He apologized as well to Detroit manager Jim Leyland, and both Galarraga and Leyland spoke compassionately of Joyce and human frailty in their post-game remarks.

While disappointed that a perfect game will not be added to the record books, they expressed an understanding that everyone makes mistakes, and when mistakes are admitted and apologies are offered, forgiveness must be granted.

Sports are useless if they do not point us toward something beyond themselves, and teach us how to become better human beings. As disappointing as Joyce's call was to this life-long Tiger fan, the beautiful lesson in humility and forgiveness is so much more important than a purely athletic achievement.

If Joyce had made the right call (or could have been over-ruled by a replay) I would have a "perfect game" to remember, like an autographed baseball I place on a shelf and look at every now and then.

But because he made the wrong call, I instead have a moving example of contrition and forgiveness from which I can draw strength and inspiration. If baseball does not allow itself such lessons to offer, it might as well not be played at all.
 
I am much more proud of Armando Galarraga for his gracious response to this incident than I am for his stellar pitching performance, and I greatly admire Jim Joyce for his honesty and humility.
 
Baseball has become stronger not in spite of this episode, but because of it. The grand old game has one more jewel in its case because an umpire made a mistake, apologized for it, and was forgiven.
 
A game doesn't get much more perfect than that.

_____

James Penrice is the author of eight books, a correspondent for Catholic Athletes for Christ, and a contributor to Catholic Online.

---

'Help Give every Student and Teacher FREE resources for a world-class Moral Catholic Education'