West: Rivals' slow play 'embarrassing'
If you're struggling to stifle yawns and stay focused the morning after watching the New York Yankees and the Boston Red Sox play another 4-hour marathon, umpire Joe West feels your pain.
Before Wednesday night's game, West called the AL East rivals "embarrassing" and "a disgrace to baseball" for slowing the pace of their games to a crawl, according to the Bergen (N.J.) Record.
The team's season opener on Sunday took 3:46 to play. Tuesday night's game went 3:48, while Wednesday night's contest, which went 10 innings, was finished in a relatively brisk 3:21.
"They're the two clubs that don't try to pick up the pace," said West, the chief of the umpiring crew working the three-game series, according to the report. "They're two of the best teams in baseball. Why are they playing the slowest?
"It's pathetic and embarrassing. They take too long to play," he said, according to the report.
During Tuesday night's game, home plate umpire Angel Hernandez denied a number of requested time outs in the batter's box. West did not allow Hernandez to comment, according to the report.
"All of baseball looks to these two clubs to pick up the pace," West said, according to the report. "[Hernandez] did everything he could. The players aren't working with us."
The occasionally slow pace of the game has gotten baseball's attention before. After Game 4 of last year's World Series, in which Yankees catcher Jorge Posada walked to the mound to visit CC Sabathia eight times in a single inning, MLB vice president of umpiring Mike Port said frequent mound meetings by all teams would likely be discussed during the offseason.
Baseball has tried speed-up rules and guidelines in recent years, with varying results. Boston closer Jonathan Papelbon was fined a few times last season for taking too long to pitch, and one occasion had a ball called on him for that reason. And hitters have been encouraged to stay in the batter's box.
One trip to the mound is allowed per inning -- by a manager or coach -- before a pitcher must be pulled. There is no limit, however, on players-only meetings.
If you're struggling to stifle yawns and stay focused the morning after watching the New York Yankees and the Boston Red Sox play another 4-hour marathon, umpire Joe West feels your pain.
Before Wednesday night's game, West called the AL East rivals "embarrassing" and "a disgrace to baseball" for slowing the pace of their games to a crawl, according to the Bergen (N.J.) Record.
The team's season opener on Sunday took 3:46 to play. Tuesday night's game went 3:48, while Wednesday night's contest, which went 10 innings, was finished in a relatively brisk 3:21.
"They're the two clubs that don't try to pick up the pace," said West, the chief of the umpiring crew working the three-game series, according to the report. "They're two of the best teams in baseball. Why are they playing the slowest?
"It's pathetic and embarrassing. They take too long to play," he said, according to the report.
During Tuesday night's game, home plate umpire Angel Hernandez denied a number of requested time outs in the batter's box. West did not allow Hernandez to comment, according to the report.
"All of baseball looks to these two clubs to pick up the pace," West said, according to the report. "[Hernandez] did everything he could. The players aren't working with us."
The occasionally slow pace of the game has gotten baseball's attention before. After Game 4 of last year's World Series, in which Yankees catcher Jorge Posada walked to the mound to visit CC Sabathia eight times in a single inning, MLB vice president of umpiring Mike Port said frequent mound meetings by all teams would likely be discussed during the offseason.
Baseball has tried speed-up rules and guidelines in recent years, with varying results. Boston closer Jonathan Papelbon was fined a few times last season for taking too long to pitch, and one occasion had a ball called on him for that reason. And hitters have been encouraged to stay in the batter's box.
One trip to the mound is allowed per inning -- by a manager or coach -- before a pitcher must be pulled. There is no limit, however, on players-only meetings.
