Never do I say that it's only the leagues or the Mafia or the gambling interests who are in on the Fraud which is sports in America.
The players do it all the time.
And it's now clear that we can now officially coronate the Philadelphia Phillies as at least National League champions, because not only are they considered so good that the other three teams shouldn't even bother...
... but now the umpires were fooled to believe that, in what turned out to be a key moment in a seven-run reversal of fortune in Game 2, Chase Utley was hit by a 101-MPH fastball and didn't even flinch.
He took his illegal base, the next two batters went out, and then all Hell fell apart for the Reds.
A key error in right field, and a 4-0 Cincinnati lead turns into a 7-4 Philly win, with Game 3, and all but the end of the series, tomorrow in Cincinnati.
Thanks for playing, really. You know that there are issues with the game's integrity when the players can openly fool with the officiating, deny (more) what did(n't) happen on the field, and openly get away with it.
The recently-completed FIFA World Cup (one of THE most fixed events in the world -- read Declan Hill's The Fix if you don't believe me...) should be wonderful example of that.
We now have had four days of play in the playoffs, and at least three of the series have now been marred with umpiring "incompetence".
This is really looking like when the Chicago White Sox used several controversial calls to win the 2005 World Series.
Forgive me. I'm not entertained when blatant errors by the officiating become the story.
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