Major League Baseball admits they screwed up the replay on Brandon Crawford’s home run

If you missed last night’s miserable loss to the Cardinals — and, really, you were totally riveted the whole time, I’m sure — the game ended when a gaggle of different umpires across the country ignored all of the information that was available to them. It was a total debacle. Here’s the play*, as called by two announcers who do not know the ground rules of AT&T Park

* Warning: Tim McCarver

It was clearly fair, and it was clearly going to hit the roof, and that’s if it didn’t hit the foul pole. The lucky person who caught it gets to keep the baseball and was prevented from watching more 2017 Giants baseball, so good for him, but it was clearly a home run.

And Major League Baseball admitted that someone screwed up.

First, the term batter-runner gives me a serious puppymonkeybaby vibe, and I never want to read it again.

Second, this is very nice of MLB to do.

Third, HOW DID IT HAPPEN? My word, this game could have meant something. It didn’t. But it could have! I need to know if the umpires on the field were jabbering something about the green tin roof being in play, or if the umpire in New York was absolutely positive that they knew all the ground rules at AT&T Park, so why would they even bother checking, I mean they were SO sure, there wasn’t even a point, really. I’m picturing Brainy Smurf, but an umpire.

The game didn’t matter, but I really want to know the process behind the decision.

We will never get it. Instead, we will get a statement acknowledging the error. Brandon Crawford is not second on the team with 13 home runs. He did not surpass his total from last year. His continuing renaissance does not have the benefit of another home run to boost his slugging percentage and OPS.

Just tell us how it happened, Manfred. Give us a window into the soul of this screw-up. And make sure it never happens again, unless it’s to the Dodgers, thank you.