Thanks Alex - I just don't have the free time I used to to find this kind of stuff.

This'll sound snarkier than I intend it to be but it was the second link returned searching "home run in first at bat." The first result answered too but I didn't want to use a Wikipedia link.

Or, in the parlance offered recently, here.

Alex, I'm so sorry, but your link is set up wrong. This is what you were attempting to do.

Is there a "Let Me 'Let Me Google That For You' For You"?

Hmm...I wonder how that happened. You have to cut us old people some slack when it comes to the new technologies you whippersnappers come up with.

Perhaps you were subconsciously trying to make my dream of an infinite "let me google that for you" loop come true.

When did they change the rules to allow starting pitchers to pitch more than 5 innings?

The tables have turned. For a while the Dodgers' winning formula was to just keep things close and wear the opposing starting pitcher down until it became a battle of the 'pens. But for the first time in a LONG time their bullpen is proving to be ****e. Yeesh.

On the plus side, they've got a ton of depth everywhere else (except maybe catcher).

Strange incident last night, where the umps reversed their call. I've never seen that happen before, where a team had to retake the field, after a third out had been called. Apparently, Dusty Baker had never seen it before either, and he's seen a few more games than I have.

Granted, we ended up creaming the Reds, but I'm still shaking my head over what I saw.

Yeah, that was really weird.

Watching it at full speed a few times, I was positive the ball dropped. Watching in slow-mo, I wasn't so sure. No doubt that if there were instant replay in baseball (*shudder*) this would have been a call that would have remained as-called on the field, no conclusive evidence in the replay (though why Fox had only 1 camera angle on it is a mystery).

I'm still pretty sure the ball hit grass, not the tip of Ethier's glove. And thus I think the right call was eventually made on the field. It's not common for umpires to reverse their call after consulting, but it happens. The only thing unique about this situation is that I've never seen them reverse a call in a situation where, having made the wrong call initially, the result of the play is affected. Namely, had it not been ruled an out initially, the Reds would have had some chance at scoring 2 runs (though no guarantee with Ethier's arm). And I suppose even that is not all that unprecedented, there are plenty of situations (interference, ball going out of the field of play) that happen fairly commonly where umps are required to make a judgment call as to how likely it is that a runner would have advanced.

I'll have to look up the details.

My officiating highlight so far this season was an early game double play by the Mariners against the Athletics. The only issue was that nobody had actually been put out on the play and while there was half an argument for one of them being out anyway (he thought he'd been tagged, not seeing it was by an empty glove and so took a step towards the dugout before realizing and advancing to second), the other definitely never was.