Something is clearly off with MLB’s umpiring and replay system. Pete Alonso appeared to crush a go-ahead homer for the Orioles on Wednesday, only for it to be ruled foul and somehow survive review. In a sport drowning in cameras, tracking data, and technology, MLB still could not tell whether a ball was fair or foul. Baltimore was furious, Camden Yards was stunned, and the decision was so embarrassing that even a diehard fan of the opposing team called it out.

“I will raise my voice for Pete Alonso and understand I am a diehard Yankees fan,” Adam Schein said in his podcast, as per New York Post Sports. “The Yankees absolutely were lucky given the fact that the umpires and replay command center were completely clueless. Major League Baseball has a huge problem on its hands.”

The Orioles and Yankees were tied 3-3 in the seventh when Pete Alonso appeared to change the game with one swing. He crushed Brent Headrick’s slider at 107.1 mph, sending it a Statcast-projected 410 feet down the left-field line. Alonso thought it was gone. Baltimore thought it was gone.

Instead, third-base umpire Will Little ruled it foul. Alonso stopped his celebration and grabbed his head in disbelief. Craig Albernaz immediately challenged, but replay somehow failed to produce a definitive answer. The original call stood, leaving Baltimore without what looked like a go-ahead homer and plenty of fans convinced the Orioles had been robbed.

Schein admitted that he wasn’t happy with the fact that Alonso just hit a home run against the Yankees. But when it was called foul, he was certain it was a bad call, and the review would overturn it. 

“And they say the call on the field stands. In terms of getting it absolutely wrong, this is the theater of the absurd,” he said. 

Pete Alonso himself had a hard time believing what he just witnessed. And to make matters worse, he was struck out after three pitches, and New York eventually won 5-3 to secure the series. 

“It is what it is. The video room and the umpire at third base, they called it foul,” Alonso said after the game. “That’s the only opinions that really matter.”

But he was obviously not happy. He even admitted that it was a crucial turning point for the game. While he had to accept the ruling, he wasn’t necessarily convinced of the call. 

“Looking at the video, the view from where the camera was pointing straight down the line, from what it looked like, it was to the right of the yellow and the pole,” he added, “so I thought it was fair.”

If you look at what followed, the Orioles seemed to lose their edge right after Alonso’s disputed home run. Baltimore never really recovered from that inning.

• Cam Sanders opened the eighth by hitting two batters and issuing a walk to load the bases with two outs, forcing Craig Albernaz to turn to Yennier Cano.
• Cano got George Lombard Jr. to hit a weak grounder, but it was slow enough for Lombard to beat it out and give New York a 4-3 lead.
• Two pitches later, a wild pitch allowed Jazz Chisholm Jr. to score, making it 5-3. Baltimore still had a chance in the bottom half after Samuel Basallo reached and Dylan Beavers walked, but Leody Taveras popped up on the first pitch to kill the rally.
• The Orioles went quietly in the ninth, with Alonso left standing in the on-deck circle as the final out was recorded.

In less than two innings, Baltimore went from believing it had taken the lead to watching the game completely slip away.

And this is not the first time MLB’s replay system has stumbled on almost the exact same type of play.

And this was hardly MLB’s first replay embarrassment. In April 2025, Aaron Judge appeared to crush a home run against the Rays, only for it to be ruled foul and left that way after an inconclusive review. Television replays seemed to show the ball was fair, Judge lost what should have been his eighth homer of the season, and Aaron Boone was ejected after the next pitch.

Judge did not hide his frustration afterward. “It was a fair ball. But that’s why we’ve got replay,” he said, before adding, “They missed it, and I’ve just got to move on.” Boone was just as certain after reviewing the play himself, saying, “It’s a home run. It didn’t go our way, though.” He also acknowledged the replay problem directly: “I guess they couldn’t find enough [that was] conclusive. So we’ve got to live with the call.”

More than a year later, MLB was back in the same embarrassing spot with Alonso, still unable to settle a towering ball near the foul pole despite all the replay technology at its disposal.

And while Alonso tried to brush it off afterward, Schein wasn’t buying the calm response. To him, a failure this obvious deserved outrage, not acceptance.

But the way he presented his case with the usual calm demeanor wasn’t doing it for Schein.

That’s why he decided to raise his voice for the 31-year-old. And he is not the only person outside the Orioles camp not fully on board with the call. 

Debate continues despite Alonso’s acceptance

Yankees reliever Headrick was asked about his thoughts on the play and the consequences it had on the game. And he offered a straightforward answer, saying, “I’m a pitcher, right? So from my vantage point, I thought it was foul. But yeah, I think it could have gone either way. It went in our favor.”

“You definitely never know what they’re going to rule, but I was really surprised that it came back ‘stands,’” the Orioles manager said.

Albernaz didn’t try to put the call as the reason they lost the game. But he admitted that it was disappointing.

“That moment was a big moment, especially [because] it takes a home run from us, and Pete, as well.”

The Yankees manager, on the other hand, was much more certain that it wasn’t a home run. Believing the call wasn’t the reason for their triumph, Aaron Boone said, “Sorry, Pete. I think it was foul,” with a smile on his face. 

Orioles starter Chris Bassitt called it “crazy” that, despite all the technology available, MLB still couldn’t determine whether the ball was fair or foul. He blamed the lack of better technology on cost, while Pete Alonso went a step further and offered a simple solution.

“I think having a camera or laser shooting straight up, we have all the technology, analytics and funds. I don’t see why we can’t do it,” he added. 

Schein’s frustration came from the same place. For him, this was bigger than one bad call. The real problem was that MLB has the cameras, analytics and resources to settle plays like this, yet still ended up with an inconclusive review on a potential go-ahead home run.