But the Phillies tied it in the top of the ninth against Cubs reliever Brad Brach, who thought he had a game-winning strikeout only to see Andrew McCutchen awarded a walk on a
checked swing to set up the go-ahead run.
The
checked swing is one of baseball's tougher judgment calls.
Ross was ejected from a game for the first time in his career when he argued a
checked swing in the eighth.
It was with that in mind that Horton was ejected in the eighth inning by first base umpire Travis Katzenmeier, after the UO coach complained from the dugout about a third strike call on a
checked swing by Kyle Garlick.
A
checked swing is one of the most difficult calls for an umpire to make, whether it's the home plate umpire or one of the base umps who is asked to make the decision.
But I returned to the batter's box and the series continued: a bouncer to our first-base coach, a foul deep to right, a foul ball after a
checked swing. I noticed the Cardinal infielders were standing around now like waiting at a bus stop, indifferent, probably getting hungry for dinner.
The first two outs in the bottom of the ninth inning were called third strikes, and the third was a strikeout on a
checked swing that third-base umpire Kelly Gonzales ruled was enough of an attempt to complete Arizona's first series victory over OSU since 2007.
Kevin Youkilis was ejected for arguing a
checked swing in the eighth and Scutaro replaced him in the lineup, with Aviles moving over to third.
By adding a
checked swing, the hitter can distract the catcher even more.
Boston pitching coach John Farrell was ejected by Davidson during that at-bat for arguing a
checked swing call.