Good eye, batter!

For the home plate umpire . . .

Not so much.

Two outs, bottom of the ninth, trailing by one run, runner in scoring position, newcomer Cody Ross understands that it all comes down to him, that, above all, he can't swing at any bad pitches coming in at 97 miles per hour or more, that he has to make contact and try to get that runner in, to tie the game.

So, no swings in this at-bat:

And . . .

Three called strikes.

Ross simply was looking for something to hit. Instead, with a 2-1 count, he watched closer Fernando Rodney's final two pitches sail in for called strikes.

Replays showed that Vanover's eyesight was questionable. [No, unlaughably bad.]

"We're trying to get something going right there in a late situation, and that's unacceptable," Ross said. "I'm battling, I'm bearing down, my whole team's bearing down. Everyone on the field should be bearing down."

Ross felt his hard-earned plate discipline punished him. "We've been playing this game for so long that you recognize pitches early and you see them out of the hand and you say that's a ball, and then it crosses wherever and it's called a strike," he said. "I've taught myself over the years to take those pitches and not expand my strike zone. Make him make a mistake. He didn't make a mistake. As soon as it comes out of his hand, I'm in shutdown mound, saying no, that's a ball. Then it's a strike.

Next one - ball.

No, strike.

What are you going to do?

Move on and go get them tomorrow."

Ross believes umpires should face consequences for lapses in judgment.

"If I'm going up there and striking out every at-bat, I'm going to get benched," he said. "But it's not that way with (umpires). They can go out there and make bad calls all day, and they're not going to be held accountable for it."

Game over.

Sox lose.

Sure sorry the cable was out so that I didn't see it.

Funny game, baseball.

'tweren't meant to be, comes the laconic reply.

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