Protested game


A protested game occurs in baseball when a manager believes that an umpire's decision is in violation of the official rules. In such cases, the manager can raise a protest by informing the umpires, and the game continues to be played "under protest." An umpire's judgment call may not be protested.

Rules

In Major League Baseball, protests are governed by Rule 7.04, "Protesting Games".
A protested game is reviewed and adjudicated by the league president, or the executive vice president of baseball operations, who may order a game resumed only if finding the umpire's decision was in violation of the rules and the decision "adversely affected the protesting team’s chances of winning the game." A well-known example of a protested game in MLB was the Pine Tar Incident in 1983, which is the only time to date that a protested game in the American League has been ordered replayed from the point-of-protest.

Upheld protests in MLB

Upheld protests are a rare event; the below tables list upheld protests in MLB.

Resumed games

, there are only 15 known occurrences of a protest being upheld and the game being resumed from the point at which the protest was raised. By comparison, there have been 15 unassisted triple plays in MLB history, also as of 2019.
Protesting team won the game
Protesting team lost the game

DateVenueProtesting teamInningOpposing teamNature of protestFinalRef.
August 30, 1913Baker Bowl, PhiladelphiaPhiladelphia Phillies9th New York GiantsUmpire declared a forfeit due to behavior of Phillies' fans; league vacated forfeit and ordered game played to completion.Phillies 8
Giants 6
July 5, 1920Polo Grounds, New York CityPhiladelphia Phillies7th New York GiantsPlacement of runners following a Phillies pop-up that was not caught; one umpire had ruled a force out, the other an infield fly.Giants 13
Phillies 0
May 28, 1921Forbes Field, PittsburghPittsburgh Pirates8th Cincinnati RedsUmpires allowed a rundown to occur after the ball had been thrown into the Reds' dugout and thrown back to a player.Pirates 4
Reds 3
July 2, 1934Wrigley Field, ChicagoSt. Louis Cardinals7th Chicago CubsInfield fly was not called on a Cubs' pop-up in front of the plate with the bases loaded and one out.Cubs 7
Cardinals 1
June 5, 1943Sportsman's Park, St. LouisPhiladelphia Phillies8th St. Louis CardinalsGame called on account of rain; Cardinals' grounds crew did not cover the field properly.Phillies 2
Cardinals 1
June 13, 1943Polo Grounds, New York CityNew York Giants9th Philadelphia PhilliesA Phillies batter deliberately stepped into a pitch, which should be ruled an out, but was not ruled out.Giants 4
Phillies 3
August 17, 1947Shibe Park, PhiladelphiaBrooklyn Dodgers7th Philadelphia PhilliesDeliberate stalling tactics by the Phillies so that the game would be halted due to curfew.Dodgers 7
Phillies 5
August 25, 1948Forbes Field, PittsburghPittsburgh Pirates9th Brooklyn DodgersIllegal substitution by Brooklyn; pitcher replaced before he had finished pitching to one batter.Pirates 12
September 22, 1954County Stadium, MilwaukeeCincinnati Reds9th Milwaukee BravesUmpires ruled a Reds baserunner out after batter ran to first on an uncaught third strike and drew a throw, which went into the outfield.Braves 4
Red 3
August 1, 1971Veterans Stadium, PhiladelphiaSt. Louis Cardinals12th Philadelphia PhilliesUmpires called game after rain delay, reverting 6–3 Cardinals lead into 3–3 tie. Cardinals' protest was upheld, as unplayable field was due to breakdown of Phillies' rain removal machine.Cardinals 9
Phillies 6
May 15, 1975Jarry Park, MontrealAtlanta Braves4th Montreal ExposUmpires called game after rain delay, negating a 4–0 Braves lead. Braves protested, asserting umpires didn't wait long enough or test condition of field.Braves 5
Expos 4
August 21, 1979Shea Stadium, New York CityHouston Astros9th New York MetsUmpires disallowed a single by a Houston batter that had occurred with Mets' first baseman not on the field.Mets 5
Astros 0
July 24, 1983Yankee Stadium, New York CityKansas City Royals9th New York YankeesUmpires called a Royals batter out after using a bat with too much pine tar on the handle. Royals 5
Yankees 4
June 16, 1986Three Rivers Stadium, PittsburghPittsburgh Pirates6th St. Louis CardinalsPirates protested umpires' decision to call the game on account of rain ; didn't wait long enough.Cardinals 4
Pirates 2
August 19, 2014Wrigley Field, ChicagoSan Francisco Giants5th Chicago CubsGiants protested umpires' decision to call the game on account of rain ; Cubs' grounds crew had difficulty covering the field during sudden heavy rain.Cubs 2
Giants 1

Non-resumed games

There have been other instances of a protest being upheld, with the game not resumed from the point at which the protest was raised. Examples include:
DateVenueProtesting teamInningOpposing teamNature of protestOutcomeRef.
May 7–8, 1902West Side Park, ChicagoNew York Giants—Chicago OrphansThe pitcher's plate was found to be the wrong distance from home plate. New York's protest was upheld, and the league ordered the games to be replayed.Replayed
October 2, 1912West Side Park, ChicagoPittsburgh Pirates10th Chicago CubsChicago won in extra innings, with the winning run driven in by a player who batted out of order. The basis of Pittsburgh's protest was that "the umpire was required to call attention to any infraction of the rules." The protest was upheld and the game result was simply removed from the league standings, as the protest was ruled on late in the 1912 season, with both teams out of pennant contention.No contest
May 14, 1914Federal League Park, BuffaloChicago Whales9th Buffalo BluesUmpire's ruling following a dropped ball on an infield fly. League president upheld the protest and ordered the entire game replayed.Replayed
June 19, 1915Terrapin Park, BaltimoreBaltimore Terrapins1st Chicago WhalesUmpire allowed a Chicago player to score after he had left the field and gone to the bench. League president upheld the protest and ordered the entire game replayed.Replayed
April 17, 1917Braves Field, BostonPhiladelphia Phillies2nd Boston BravesUmpire ruled a Phillies player out for running outside the base path, on a play when the runner was not avoiding a tag. League president upheld the protest and ordered the entire game replayed.Replayed
August 19, 1917Navin Field, DetroitWashington Senators9th Detroit TigersDetroit's third base coach touched the Detroit baserunner who scored the winning run of the game as he rounded third base. League president upheld the protest and ordered the entire game replayed.Replayed
June 3, 1918Ebbets Field, BrooklynBrooklyn Robins6th St. Louis CardinalsA Cardinals baserunner reached third base, started to run back to second base, then ran directly to home plate without re-touching third base; umpire allowed the run to count. League president upheld the protest and ordered the entire game replayed.Replayed
July 28, 1924Sportsman's Park, St. LouisSt. Louis Browns9th Boston Red SoxUmpire's misunderstanding of substitutions led to the Browns batting out of order. League president upheld the protest and ordered the entire game replayed.Replayed
July 20, 1947Ebbets Field, BrooklynSt. Louis Cardinals9th Brooklyn DodgersWith the Cardinals leading 2–0, their batter hit a deep drive that was signaled as not a home run by one umpire. The batter, in running the bases, slowed up after seeing it signaled as a home run by another umpire and was thrown out at the plate; this was the basis of the protest. The protest was upheld, however the remedy was not to re-play the game from the point of protest; the league president ruled that the home run would count. As the Dodgers had gone on to score three runs in the bottom of the ninth, this turned a 3–2 Dodgers win into a 3–3 tie. The tie game stands as an official result, with all individual records counting. A replay of the tied game was held on August 18, 1947, which was won by the Dodgers.Counted as a tie game and replayed