The AP is informing us that instant replay could be a reality in baseball within a few weeks.

We haven’t heard much complaining from the umpires’ union about the subject; hopefully that means the umpires have finally correctly understood that proper use of replay will be a very, very good thing for them, because it will cut down on some of the most egregious umpire mistakes. Umpire opposition to replay was always about ego. I don’t need no gosh-darn machine double-checking my work, sonny!

I don’t know how it’s going to work, but I know the umpires would (or should) be very happy with a system where, if a potential home run bounces very near the yellow line, they don’t even have to make a call on it at all; they can automatically treat is as a live ball, let the play play out, and then once the ball’s back in the pitcher’s glove, and by the time the live play has ended, the replay booth already has a ruling with very little or no game action lost.

The article says replay looks to be used, at first here, on “boundary calls such as home runs”. That leaves an awful lot of room for interpretation. My guess is the Powers that Be haven’t really decided yet whether to use it just for home runs, or for home runs plus some other things like close plays at the plate. i.e., there’s still some fighting with the umpires’ union to be done over that.

My guess is, it’ll be strictly for home run calls this year maybe foul/fair calls as well, and if it goes well, the foul/fair and close plays at home plate (specifically home plate, not other bases) will be added in 2009 or perhaps 2010, and another year or two later they’ll add the other bases.

While we’re here, this is the Quote of the Week:

A rash of missed boundary calls — fair or foul, over the fence or not — prompted the Selig to alter his opposition.

The Selig! I love it. From now until the end of time, we have a new title by which we will always refer to His Commissionerness. In fact, I think all future Commissioners should be referred to not as the Commissioner, but as the Selig. Presumably that mistake will be fixed in the linked article by the time you read this–looks like ESPN’s editor deleted an adjective and forgot to delete the ‘the’ accompanying–but ESPN, if you thought I was letting that nugget slide by, you’re crazy.

The Selig.