How Marmol pulled off 'Uno Reverse' with successful challenge of a challenge

ST. LOUIS -- Before leaving his office Sunday morning following the pregame reporters’ availability session with Oliver Marmol, I asked the Cardinals manager if he had ever played the card game Uno.

Marmol acknowledged that he had, while seemingly wondering where this line of questioning was headed.

He understood the connection, though, when I explained that the concept of the “Uno Reverse” card was the first thing that came to my mind when, during the seventh inning of Saturday night’s game against the Red Sox, he challenged a play that had already been challenged -- and overturned against the Cardinals’ interests.

Cardinals left fielder José Fermín was originally ruled to have been hit by a pitch from Boston right-hander Greg Weissert. But the pitch didn’t hit the batter, so the Red Sox, understandably, wanted to challenge the call.

But by the time replay review overturned it, Marmol was champing at the bit to challenge the same play for a different reason -- with the result ultimately putting Fermín right back where he had been, standing at first base.

While the pitch didn’t hit Fermín, his bat on a check swing did appear to connect with the mitt of Red Sox catcher Carlos Narváez, which would be catcher’s interference.

Marmol explained Sunday morning that there was some initial discrepancy with the umpires as to whether he had challenged the play in time. Obviously, far more than 30 seconds had elapsed since the play itself had ended.

But, understandably, Marmol had little interest in challenging the play right after it ended -- because initially, the sequence ended with Fermín occupying first base, a favorable outcome for the Cardinals.

“I can’t challenge until they overturn it,” Marmol said. “I can’t challenge something that went in my favor.”

Even before Boston’s challenge asserting that the pitch didn’t hit Fermín was proven successful, Marmol’s video team was all over the prospect of catcher’s interference on the play.

So Marmol came out onto the field to lobby for his position -- he had his hand up to challenge the challenge right away. He only didn’t signal challenge immediately following the play, because to that point, there was nothing yet to challenge.

“I can’t challenge until you tell me that it’s no longer in my favor,” Marmol reasoned, rehashing his conversation with crew chief BIll Miller from the night before. “He’s like, ‘Yeah, that’s a good point.’ So they huddled up and then it challenged, which was good.”

The outcome didn’t ultimately flip the game for the Cardinals, but it was a fun oddity of the replay era that got the managerial gears spinning in both dugouts as the potential for a late-game rally suddenly brewed from the seldom-seen notion of a double challenge.