Blue Jays burned by new 'Chase Utley Rule'
New regulation aims to reduce injuries from takeout slides
The Toronto Blue Jays thought they had pulled ahead of the Tampa Bay Rays in the ninth inning of Tuesday night's game, only to be denied by a new rule governing runners trying to break up double plays.
The new regulation, commonly referred to as the "Chase Utley Rule," came into play after Jose Bautista came sliding into second base and forced an errant throw to first by Rays second baseman Logan Forsythe. The bad throw allowed the Jays to score what appeared to be the tying and go-ahead runs.
But upon review, replay officials determined that Bautista did not slide directly into the bag, illegally hindering Forsythe in the process. (Bautista's hand also appeared to make contact with the second baseman's foot.) The call was changed to a game-ending double play, handing Toronto a 3-2 loss.
While a runner is still allowed to make contact with the pivot man on a double play, according to the new rule, he can only do so under the following conditions:
- He begins his slide (i.e., makes contact with the ground) before reaching the base;
- He is able and attempts to reach the base with his hand or foot;
- He is able and attempts to remain on the base (except home plate) after completion of the slide; and
- He slides within reach of the base without changing his pathway for the purpose of initiating contact with a fielder.
For Major League Baseball's full rule description, click here.
Nasty origins
MLB instituted the new rule earlier this year, following a series of incidents that saw runners purposely deviating from their path to gain an unfair advantage.
One of the more serious takeout slides involved the rule's namesake, Chase Utley, who during a post-season game last year appeared to intentionally slide into Mets shortstop Ruben Tejada, resulting in a broken leg for Tejada.
Several months later, Tejada, who is now back on the field, was still upset by the play telling the New York Post:
"I know it's part of the game, but not like that. I would never do that to another infielder. That is the position I play and I would never want to hurt another player that plays that position like that. It would have been different if some other position player, a corner infielder or an outfielder had done that to me, but he is an middle infielder, he should know better."
Pirates infielder Jung Ho Kang also had his season ended last year by a takeout slide from Chicago's Chris Coghlan
With files from The Associated Press