WORST CALL EVER

As Yahoo Sports reported recently, umpires are humans. They make mistakes. But in a recent Dodger-Twins game, the worst call in the history of the sport may have occurred against the Dodgers.

Yasiel Puig of the Dodgers, hit a high chopper up the middle of the diamond. He clearly beat the throw to first base. The throw skipped past the first baseman, but the Twins catcher backed up the play. The film clearly shows that Puig stayed on the right side of the foul line all the way through his run past first base. His body never crossed the foul line toward second.  However umpire Tim Welke called Puig out after he made a phantom "lean" toward second base after an infield single

Welke mistook Puig sharply turning his head to the right to check for the ball's location as an attempt of the runner to advance to second base.  It was evident from Puig's body language that Puig wanted to take an extra base, but when saw Pinto with the ball, he applied the brakes. If Puig's left shoulder began to dip toward second, the rest of his body actually leaned right. He never left the baseline, never crossed the foul line. He stopped, turned around clockwise (that's away from second base), and started walking back to the bag like an innocent man who just had hit an infield single.

Now, some believe that umpires are more sensitive to their calls because of instant replay. But here is a situation where the call was blatantly wrong, but nothing was done about it. The play was not reviewed, and the Dodgers first base coach did not put up an argument. Puig just stood there in shock until his coach told him to head to the dugout.

One could argue that if MLB is going to rely on replay technology to make its game better, there should be an instant "alert" to the crew chief from the league office or official scorer to correct a blatant missed call. Then have the crew chief review the play and make the correct call. Of course, replay itself is not perfect. At least twice this season, calls were reviewed during games and afterward, the umpires got the play wrong.

PUIG AND A POKE

Don Mattingly played for the Yankees. When a player dons the pinstripes, there is traditional form of professionalism that goes along with the uniform. There is a dress code. There is winning attitude. There are stressed fundamentals. The aura of being a Yankee is in isolator against the harshness of the NY media. It also works, since the Yankees are consistently competitive in the AL East.

Mattingly is now the LA Dodgers manager. Things are more laid back on the West Coast. Pacific rim teams rarely get national coverage with the East Coast bias of network television. So most people failed to realize how bad the Dodgers were in the first half of this year. Injuries and underperforming star players contributed to a near historic collapse. But then things dramatically turned around when the Dodgers called up a 22 year old Cuban defector named Yasiel Puig.

He immediately sparked the team by hitting massive home runs and making diving catches in the outfield. His rookie enthusiasm helped awaken the dormant skills of the rest of the team. The Dodgers have clawed out of the cellar and now are one of the best teams in the majors.

It is quite a turnaround. And the starting point was Puig.

In his first 76 games, he has had 346 PA. He has hit 13 HR, 30 RBI, .406 OBP, .963 OPS and 4.0 WAR. He is an overnight sensation; a Hollywood script star.

And it may have gone to his head. For at least the second time this year, Mattingly has had to pull Puig from the line-up during a game. The last incident was Puig's failure to break up a double play at second by not sliding toward the bag. He also mopes to right field after striking out. He also shows a brass attitude of "me first" over team play. There are times that he just stops concentrating on the game. Mattingly, an old school Yankee professional, cannot stand a showboating non-team player.

LA gave Puig a $42 million contract, tying him up through 2018. It is life changing money for a 22 year old defector who is now living for the first time in a capitalist country with money to spend.

Defenders state that Puig has been thrown a cultural curve ball. That there are language barrier issues with teammates and his manager. That the spotlight of stardom is difficult to control at first. That the team cannot try to change the way Puig plays if it still wants his great production.

A young superstar player does not need to be pampered; he needs to be coached up to a professional level. He needs to correct the flaws in his game, whether mental or physical. The sport's history is littered with fresh hot rookies who crash and burn within a few years. It all depends on how a young foreign player handles the situation and criticism.

Some Latin players are like overgrown children. From the poor streets of third world countries, playing baseball and soccer are their only means of escape. For very good players, the games are second hand without much effort. They don't have to work at it because they are so much better than their local peers. They get stubborn in their ways and their macho heritage comes to the surface when someone tells them to change. Puig has not risen to a Carlos Zambrano phase, yet.

But it does show the beginning of a bad trend. Fellow star defector, Cub prospect Jorge Soler, has had his professional issues in Class A ball this year. The lack of hustle and a on-field altercation with an opponent led to a short suspension. The Cubs tried to write it off quickly as Soler having some emotional issues. Well, Soler is one of the front office's "core" prospects for the future. Why have a ticking time bomb of emotions at the core of your rebuild?

Time will tell if these are isolated incidents or whether there is deep cultural problem with Latin players when they begin playing baseball in America. Many teams have placed great time and resources in signing Latin players in recent years. Some teams have done so in an attempt to cultivate a new Hispanic fan base to raise their yearly attendance. Other teams believe there is a competitive advantage in signing foreign players for less cost than U.S. high school or college players.  But there are new concerns assimilating foreign players into U.S. baseball organizations.

BRYANT SIGNS BUT MAY GET BURIED

Baseball America reports that the Cubs have agreed to sign their number one pick, Kris Bryant, to the slot value of $6.7 million bonus.

It is the largest bonus in the 2013 draft and the biggest in the two years under the new draft rules, surpassing the $6.35 million that the Astros paid Mark Appel, this year’s No. 1 choice.

Bryant’s bonus also sets a Cub franchise bonus record, beating the $6 million that Chicago paid Cuban defector Jorge Soler as part of a $30 million major league contract last summer. The Cubs’ previous draft bonus standard was $4 million, which Mark Prior got as part of a $10.5 million big league deal as the No. 2 overall pick in 2001.

Bryant was the best power hitter in this year's draft. He was Baseball America’s 2013 College Player of the Year by hitting  31 homers,and leading all Division I players in runs (80), walks (66), total bases (187) and slugging (.820) while batting .329.

BA believes that  his arm strength and patience at the plate are two more assets, and he’s also an average runner wtih good athleticism for a 6-foot-5, 215-pounder. He played third base at San Diego but may wind up in right field in the long run.

Bryant's season ended in early June, and once the Cubs get the third baseman signed, the team states he will report to their facility in Mesa, Ariz., to work out before being assigned to a Minor League team.

"We would need to get a feel for how rusty he is," Cubs general manager Jed Hoyer said Wednesday. "Once we get a feel for his conditioning, we'll figure out exactly what the right path is. Certainly, he'll start out at the very low levels [in the Minors]. We're hopeful he can move quickly through those."

What?

Bryant stopped playing about a month ago. He is 20 years old. How "rusty" can he get?

Also, the Cubs plan to stick Bryant in "very low minors" which would be Rookie or short season Boise which makes very little sense. You don't pay $6.7 million to have a the best prospect in the draft sent to summer camp. Bryant played at a high level in college. He should be assigned to AAA Iowa to play third right away, or even AA Tennessee if the Cubs are going to try to make him an outfielder. There is no reason to believe Bryant could not be in the starting line up in 2014. But it is apparent that the Cubs front office is going to bury him in the low minors to impede his promotion curve from level to level. This would put Bryant on a three year apprenticeship or a 2016 Cub debut. This is to give the front office "more time" before their best prospects are "major league ready."  But Bryant is as close to major league ready as any prospect in the system.

Yasiel Puig played 46 games at Rookie-A+ ball in 2012 and 40 games in AA this year when he was called up. Puig signed a big money IFA deal the same year as Jorge Soler. During that same time period, Soler continued to play in Class A ball (until he was injured). Other teams have found great success in promoting their star prospects early (example, Bryce Harper with the Nationals).  Bryant should be no different.