SI

MLB Umpire Cards Near-Perfect Game in 15 Innings of Mariners-Tigers ALDS Game 5

Home-plate umpire Alan Porter was almost perfect behind the plate for 15 innings of dramatic postseason baseball.

Tim Capurso

Porter was excellent behind the plate for 15 innings of gripping postseason baseball between the Mariners and Tigers in Game 5 of the ALDS.
Porter was excellent behind the plate for 15 innings of gripping postseason baseball between the Mariners and Tigers in Game 5 of the ALDS. / Robert Edwards-Imagn Images
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For 15 edge-of-your-seat innings, the Mariners and Tigers played a dramatic, thrilling postseason contest in Game 5 of the American League Division Series that ultimately ended in Seattle joy and Detroit heartbreak. And for the impartial fan, this was baseball heaven. There was excellent pitching, clutch hitting, peak drama and even first-class umpiring.

Over the course of 15 innings, 472 total pitches and nearly five hours of game time, home-plate umpire Alan Porter was nearly perfect. Porter correctly called 219 of 228 balls and strikes, a highly-impressive accuracy rate of 96%, according to Umpire Scorecards.

And while Porter wasn't perfect—some may point to his called strike against Mariners shortstop J.P. Crawford, or in the Tigers' case, the ruled hit-by-pitch of Mariners outfielder Victor Robles, a somewhat controversial call that went against Detroit's favor.

But overall, this was an outstanding performance by an MLB umpire on the game's biggest stage at a time when umpires are under the microscope seemingly more than ever.

A round of applause for Alan Porter please.

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Tim Capurso
TIM CAPURSO

Tim Capurso is a staff writer on the Breaking and Trending News team at Sports Illustrated. Prior to joining SI in November 2023, he wrote for RotoBaller and ClutchPoints, where he was the lead editor for MLB, college football and NFL coverage. A lifelong Yankees and Giants fan, Capurso grew up just outside New York City and now lives near Philadelphia. When he's not writing, he enjoys reading, exercising and spending time with his family, including his three-legged cat Willow, who, unfortunately, is an Eagles fan.

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