If you're a Major League Baseball fan, you've likely heard by now of the controversial missed home run call from Wednesday night's Oakland/Cleveland game. The obvious question from everyone: How could the umpires have missed such an easy call after using instant replay?
The answer: MLB's replay "system" is perfectly suitable ... for 1997.
According to sports blog Deadspin, MLB currently employs a 19in Sharp Aquos model — one not capable of full HD resolution — for replays, "not because of their quality but because Sharp paid the league an unknown sum of money to become its official TV sponsor."
Deadspin also reports that most of what folks know regarding MLB's instant replay systems comes from 2008, when it was first introduced. Some quick, tricky math says that was five years ago, which, in technology time these days, may as well be like 20 years.
Considering how advanced the MLB Network's setup is, not to mention some of the League's own teams like the San Francisco Giants, there really is no excuse for this.
The question for you, Experts, is: If you had your choice, and let's say space is an issue just to be fair, give us your monitor of choice that MLB should have for its umpires to get a good look at a play and (hopefully) make the right call — unlike the other night.
