Even the Dodgers announcers thought Phil Cuzzi screwed the Twins
The Twins lost to the Dodgers Monday night but not because of a lack of execution. According to manager Rocco Baldelli, they lost because the umpires couldn't see straight.
There were two blatant miscalls late in the game. The one everyone is talking about is the two called strikes against Alex Kirilloff with the bases loaded and one out in the 10th inning. Kirilloff struck out looking on a pitch that was way inside.
Twins announcers Dick Bremer and Justin Morneau were baffled, but they weren't alone. Dodgers television announcers Joe Davis and Eric Karros were equally shocked by Cuzzi's strike calls.
"Oh boy, so could some help from the umpire," said Davis, reacting to the strike one call that was high and outside, when talking about how a ground ball in that situation could help the Dodgers get out of the inning.
After a foul ball put Kirilloff in an 0-2 hole, Davis called the strike three pitch.
"Strike three called and boy-oh-boy Phil Cuzzi just made being a major league hitter way harder than it already is," he said, with Karros saying "both sides of the plate were an extra three inches."
"I mean, that's not even close," said Karros after watching the replay. "That's impossible for a hitter."
The first significant error by the umpires came in the bottom of the eighth inning with the Twins ahead 7-6. David Peralta ripped an RBI double to tie the game with two outs, but the replay showed the ball was clearly outside foul line. Despite being parked directly in front of the play, first base umpire Shane Livensparger ruled it a fair ball.
Without that hit, the Dodgers would've been down at least 7-6 and up against all-world right-hander Jhoan Duran in the ninth inning. Instead, the game went to extras, Cuzzi didn't give Kirilloff a chance and the Twins wound up losing 9-8.
