May 03, 2017

SportsFilter: The Wednesday Huddle:

A place to discuss the sports stories that aren't making news, share links that aren't quite front-page material, and diagram plays on your hand. Remember to count to five Mississippi before commenting in anger.

posted by huddle to general at 06:00 AM - 6 comments

UEFA considers change to way penalty shootouts are staged: http://www.bbc.com/sport/football/39798344

The idea is to allow each team to go first in alternating rounds. They refer to it as "ABBA".

I have an interesting variation of my own to add: After the first 5 rounds, each subsequent 2 rounds are kicked 1 meter back from the spot. After rounds 6 & 7, go back 2 meters for 8 & 9. Keep going back every 2 rounds until there is a winner. The referee sets the new location when it is moved back from the spot.

posted by jjohn24680 at 02:58 PM on May 03, 2017

posted by yerfatma at 03:45 PM on May 03, 2017

ABBA seems like a good idea.

My crazy idea for soccer is to count all shots on goal during the game and break ties after overtime with that stat. I get grumpy about matches where nobody seems capable of putting the ball on goal.

posted by rcade at 07:29 PM on May 03, 2017

I am watching the Red Sox vs Orioles game. There have been some "unpleasantries" between the two teams as a result of Manny Machado's questionable slide that injured Dustin Pedroia and the subsequent trading of batters being thrown at. It grew to the point that MLB called both clubs and warned that discipline would follow any continuation.

So tonight the Orioles' starter lost a slow curve that hit Xander Bogaerts on the hip. Immediate ejection followed, the Orioles were irate, and the Boston announcers were all over the plate umpire for not considering that there was no intent. While I agree that there was no intent, MLB put the umpire into a position where he could not use his own judgement. The problem is that if you let that one go, there is likely to be retaliation, and someone might get hurt. It's damned if you do and damned if you don't.

posted by Howard_T at 08:51 PM on May 03, 2017

My crazy idea for soccer is to count all shots on goal during the game and break ties after overtime with that stat. I get grumpy about matches where nobody seems capable of putting the ball on goal.

That might end up with teams taking random pot shots towards the end of a drawn game.

In junior knockout comps, we used to count corners.

That's probably a better way of estimating which team had more possession. However the risk is that a team ahead on corners (or shots) might become even more defensive, thus neutralising the objective of trying to get a winner on goals.

posted by owlhouse at 09:53 PM on May 03, 2017

That Gausman ejection is ridiculous and indefensible. Don't really care if it's the umpire or the league's fault but it's horrible. I'm not worried about the players retaliating because they're not stupid enough to think a curveball had any intent and even if they did I would be upset with the stupid retaliation and not upset that the ump failed to make a ridiculous ejection.

posted by tron7 at 10:49 PM on May 03, 2017

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