5.) Infield Fly Rule in the Wild Card Game (2012 NL Wild Card)
Umpire: Sam Holbrook
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Game: Atlanta Braves vs. St. Louis Cardinals (October 5, 2012)
What happened: In the bottom of the 8th inning, there were two runners on base, and a short pop-up to shallow left field was ruled "an infield fly" (automatic out). This had many scratching their heads as it landed nowhere near the infield and the shortstop wasn't positioned under it.
Braves fans started throwing trash on the field, as the umpire's interpretation of the rules was confusing to say the least. Braves ended up losing the game 6-3.
4.) Phil Cuzzi's Foul Call (2009 ALDS Game 2)
Umpire: Phil Cuzzi
Game: New York Yankees vs. Minnesota Twins (October 9, 2009)
What happened: In the Top of the 11th inning, Joe Mauer hit a ball down the left-field line that landed fair by over a foot, but umpire Cuzzi ruled it foul. A double was essentially taken from Minnesota, which resulted in a scoreless inning. That is, the Yankees scored a run in the bottom of the 11th inning, winning the game 4-3, going on to sweep the series.
3.) Don Denkinger's Blown Call (1985 World Series Game 6)
Umpire: Don Denkinger
Game: Kansas City Royals vs. St. Louis Cardinals (October 26, 1985)
What happened: In the bottom of the 9th inning, umpire Denkinger incorrectly ruled Jorge Orta safe at first. Upon instant replay review, he was clearly shown as out. This resulted in the Royals rallying to win the game 2-1, as Kansas City then proceeded to go on and win Game 7 of the 1985 World Series.
2.) Jeffrey Maier Interference (1996 ALCS Game 1)
Umpire: Rich Garcia
Game: New York Yankees vs. Baltimore Orioles (October 9, 1996)
What happened: In the 8th inning, Derek Jeter hit a deep fly ball that was caught by a 12-year-old fan named Jeffrey Maier. This turned out one of the biggest controversial incidents in baseball history, as he reached over the right-field wall to catch it. Umpire Garcia ruled it a home run instead of making the obvious fan interference call. That is, the game was tied on the call; Yankees went on to win the game 5-4.
1.) Armando Galarraga's "Imperfect Game" (2010)
Umpire: Jim Joyce
Game: Detroit Tigers vs. Cleveland Indians (June 2, 2010)
What happened: Tigers pitcher Galarraga had gotten 26 straight outs, and was one out away from a perfect game. On a ground ball hit to first baseman Miguel Cabrera, Galarraga covered first, and appeared to get the final out of the game. However, First base umpire Jim Joyce ruled Jason Donald safe at first, when the replay clearly showed he was out. Tragically, since there was no challenge reviews at the time, Galarraga lost out on being a part of MLB history. Following this, Joyce admitted he made mistake while shedding tears after the game. Ultimately, the MLB did not change the result, however this led to the implementation of replay reviews in the years following.
