OMAHA, Neb. (AP) -- A home run wrongly ruled a double at last
year's College World Series prompted the NCAA to implement instant
replay this year.
NCAA vice president for football and baseball Dennis Poppe
(Pope) said Tuesday that Brian Johnson's deep ball for Florida last
year pushed Division I baseball leaders to give umpires the ability
to review whether a ball cleared the fence, went foul or if a fan
interfered.
The bad call on Johnson's hit didn't affect the outcome of
Florida's 8-4 win over Texas. But Gators coach Kevin O'Sullivan
said this week that anything that helps umpires make the right call
is a good thing.
ESPN provides more than a dozen camera angles at the CWS. Only
the umpire crew chief decides if review will be used.