Giambi Called Out For Not Swinging

Jason Giambi was called out tonight on a pitch that was high and inside. The ump thought the ball touched the bat and therefore was a foul tip. Since it was a 2-2 count and the catcher caught the ball, strike 3 was called. There was 1 out in the 9th when this happened. The game was tied at 1. The call was an awful call as replays showed the ball never even came close to the bat. Joe Girardi was thrown out arguing. The Yanks would win the game 2 batters later. Mets fans will say that the reason Yankees came back and won was simply because Girardi was ejected. They may have a point. Willie... start arguing!

Video from ESPN.com can be found here

Awful Officiating: Big Ten Refs Indiana @ Illinois

Last night I got home, turned on ESPN to find Indiana and Illinois tipping off in the first overtime. I figured I'd sit down and watch how this one would end. The officiating during the first overtime period was absolutely horrible. Indiana twice got away with turnovers on their offensive end when the officials first didn't call an offensive foul, and on the next possession they didn't call traveling. It didn't matter for Illinois though who still had a chance to win it when their center Pruitt had a chance to win it with 2 free throws with 2 seconds on the clock. Pruitt 1-7 from the line, wound up missing them both. On the rebound an Indiana player grabbed it, took a dribble, and then attempted to shoot a 3/4 court shot when Pruitt fouled him across the arms. No call! Watching the replay showed that it was basically a boneheaded play on Pruitt who was obviously frustrated after missing two potential game winners (he missed a potential game winning free throw at the end of regulation also). The Illinois bench and coaching staff couldn't believe the no-call, and Jay Bilas even mentioned that sometimes the officials choke on their whistles late in the game. Illinois would pull away during the 2nd OT but there were a few bad calls then as well. I only watched 10 minutes of the 50 minutes played, I sure hope that the officiating wasn't that bad for the entire game.