Game 5 of the NLDS gave people many reasons to criticize Instant Replay in baseball.  Whether we agreed on the calls or not, that game certainly highlighted the main issue there is with replay.

No, it was not whether or not the “true spirit” of replay was to determine whether Jose Lobaton‘s foot came off the bag momentarily while Anthony Rizzo applied the tag:

The @WBMasonCo Replay: @Cubs challenge call that Jose Lobaton is safe at 1B in 8th; call overturned, runner is out. pic.twitter.com/W8IOgnSU3y

— MLB Replay (@MLBReplays) October 13, 2017

It also wasn’t whether the replay officials made the correct determination when they ruled Jon Jay, who slide sideways and lifted his left into Daniel Murphy, legally slid into the base:

The @WBMasonCo Replay: @Nationals challenge slide by Jon Jay at 2B in 7th; call confirmed, no violation. pic.twitter.com/CJHCGxigCZ

— MLB Replay (@MLBReplays) October 13, 2017

By the letter of the law, the determination was wrong, but still this wasn’t the biggest issue.

No the biggest issue that emerged last night was the Nationals were not able to challenge the fact that Javier Baez hit Matt Wieters in the head with his bat.

Think about that for a second.  You can challenge if someone’s foot came of the bag for a millisecond.  You can have someone look at a replay to make a determination of a judgment call.  However, you are not allowed to challenge whether someone got hit in the head with a bat.

According to the rules, if the umpires correctly ruled Baez hit Wieters in the head with his bat on his backswing, then Baez would have been ruled out.  Instead, Baez took off for first, Wieters threw it away, Addison Russell scored, and the inning continued.  Who knows how much different that game is if that call is called correctly?

Isn’t that the real point of replay?  Wasn’t the purpose of replay to make obvious game changing calls that were completely missed by the umpires reviewable?  If a system is in place, shouldn’t it stop plays that can easily be overturned from affecting the outcome of the game?

The answer to all of these is a clear and resounding, “YES!”

It makes you question why any play isn’t reviewable.  Sure, we can all agree an umpire calling balls and strikes shouldn’t be reviewed because it would be too time consuming, and you would have challenges on nearly every other pitcher.  However, outside balls and strikes, why are there plays that are not reviewable.

This isn’t Don Dekinger calling a clearly out Jorge Orta safe thereby possibly changing the outcome of that 1985 World Series.  No, there are now provisions in place to prevent that, or at least there should be.  Thursday night there wasn’t because someone drew some odd lines on what can be and what can not be reviewable with a player getting hit in the head with a bat being in the later category.

It makes no sense, and it might have changed the outcome of a postseason series.