Brewers beat Padres after ball hits roof cable — The Guardian

In the United States, the Milwaukee Brewers defeated the San Diego Padres 3–2 in the first game of the MLB National League Division Series. One of the key moments came in the ninth inning: after a pitch from closer Trevor Megill, Ty France hit the ball toward left field, but it struck a cable beneath the roof of American Family Field. The ball remained in play, and Jackson Chourio caught it for the second out. The Guardian reports.

Umpires uphold the ruling

At the time of France’s hit, there was one out, the Padres had a runner on first base, and they were trailing by one run. The San Diego team challenged the ruling on whether the ball was in fair territory, but after a review, the umpires confirmed the out.

Megill then retired Jackson Merrill, who hit the ball to right field, securing the Brewers’ victory. Under American Family Field rules, a ball that hits the roof, roof structures, a rope or cables above fair territory remains in play. If a fielder catches it, the batter is out.

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If a ball hits such structures above foul territory, it is declared dead. If it touches structures above fair territory and then lands in foul territory, it is ruled a foul ball.

Different assessments of the trajectory

Padres manager Craig Stammen believed that without the collision with the cable, France’s hit could have been a home run. Brewers manager Pat Murphy, by contrast, said he believed the ball would have gone foul.

Chourio, who had earlier tied the score with a two-run home run, said he was initially unsure whether the ball had hit the structure at all, but noticed a change in its trajectory. This was already the second time this season that the Padres lost a potential home run because of special stadium rules: in August, Xander Bogaerts’ ball hit a suspended structure at Tropicana Field, after which it was caught by Tampa Bay Rays third baseman Junior Caminero.