Hurdle working to make most of replay
PITTSBURGH -- Clint Hurdle had trouble Wednesday morning expressing how he felt about his club having been the first recipient of an outcome-changing replay reversal.
Previous challenges have occurred on games' last plays, but the difference Tuesday night was that if the plate umpire's out-call on Starling Marte had not been reversed, giving the Pirates a 2-1 win over San Francisco, the game would have continued into extra innings.
"I'm not pleasantly surprised when something happens, not discouraged when something doesn't," Hurdle said, alluding to the vagaries of replay review. "It's a work in progress -- they continually say that.
"The hundreds of reviewed plays, we have it all broken down, and I've watched every review that has taken place this year. I am just trying to make sense of it. I'm trying to be where I need to be to make the best decision I can make and not be influenced by anything I see."
Bottom-line, the Pirates skipper gave the evolving process a strong thumbs-up.
"It has enhanced the game in a lot of different areas," Hurdle said. "The right calls are being made at the right time more so than ever before."