Bay Area Buzz 12/14 Replay Rubicon; Jim Harbaugh Wins, But Not Likeable; Terrelle Pryor Should Be Starting

May 29, 2013; San Francisco, CA, USA; Oakland Athletics manager Bob Melvin (6, front) reacts after arguing with umpire Brian Knight (91) and umpire Gerry Davis (12) during the sixth inning against the San Francisco Giants at AT

Leaving Replay In Managers’ Hands A Major League Blunder

"We won’t hear all the details about baseball’s new instant-replay rules until spring, but one thing seems evident: The system cannot be activated until managers issue a “challenge.”And that’s ridiculous.It won’t be quite as antiquated as the NFL, where coaches have to decide whether they want to grab a little red flag and toss it onto the field, triggering a process that drags into eternity. From what we learned at the winter meetings, managers will go onto the field to discuss or dispute a play, then decide if a challenge is worthwhile. And they’ll have some help. Teams will be allowed to have a coach or club employee in the dugout, watching replays on a special monitor for the purpose of advising the manager what to do.Can you imagine the delays? Certain plays will leave that dugout person in a quandary, unable to make a decisive call. Meanwhile, the manager is hashing things out with the umpire, in traditional fashion. And it sounds as if managers will get only one unsuccessful challenge per game (as long as he’s right, he gets another challenge).There will be untold occasions in which a manager runs out of challenges, and thus is helpless to benefit from the new technology, facing intense scrutiny from fans and media if he has screwed it up. Stipulations will be in place for umpires to unilaterally call for replays (from the seventh inning on), but now you’re operating under an entirely different set of rules, with all the pressure on the umpires.And to top it off, all replays will be reviewed by officials in a centralized New York location. Good luck if controversial issues break out in three or four ballparks at once."

–Bruce Jenkins, San Francisco Chronicle

Harbaugh’s A Winner Everywhere But Personality-Wise

"Is 49ers coach Jim Harbaugh’s act already wearing thin, less than three years into his run as franchise resurrector? Depends how you define “act,” right?For the purposes of this mini-discussion, let’s define it as the smug, frat-boy arrogance with which Harbaugh generally carries himself. His communication with fans, via the media, for which he obviously holds a great deal of contempt, consists of dispensing information about what he fancies to be some sort of secret society — as opposed to, you know, a professional football team — in meager, oft-meaningless or bizarrely tangential portions. It’s served with a heaping side of condescension and a tall, ultra-juvenile glass of that’s-for-me-to-know-and-you-to-find-out.Now before you write off this screed as media sour grapes, understand something: I’ve never met or dealt with Harbaugh. He’s never treated me with the level of disdain and exasperation one typically reserves for the moments immediately after stepping in dog droppings, as he occasionally does with the poor men and women who cover the team on a regular basis.When it comes to the 49ers, I’m nothing more than a fan — a born-and-raised Bay Area boy who still prays at the altar of Joe Montana and Jerry Rice. As such, I greatly appreciate what Harbaugh has done on a purely football level; he has, in fact, led a resurrection of supremely impressive proportions."

–Mychael Urban, San Francisco Examiner

Sitting Terrelle Pryor A Waste Of Three Games

"Sure, jobs are on the line. The fan base is antsy. Patience has been grinded to a nub. But naming Matt McGloin the starter for the remainder of the season, which Raiders offensive coordinator Greg Olson reiterated this week, equals a missed opportunity.These last three games should be occasion to see more of Terrelle Pryor.The thirst for victories in Raider Nation is certainly palpable. But Oakland is 4-9. Any win at this point is like eating crawfish — tasty but by no means fulfilling. The beast will not be satisfied. So why not opt for development?First, let’s establish what we know: McGloin is not your future quarterback. He’s played admirably enough to prove he belongs in the NFL. He’s probably even earned the right to be the Raiders’ No. 2 next season. But he’s not a starter on a good team in the NFL. And I believe that owner Mark Davis has designs on the Raiders being a good team.No disrespect to McGloin. He’s a tough customer who throws a pretty ball. He knows how to play the position. But he’s 6-foot-1 with the speed of dial-up Internet. You can’t be a pocket passer when you can’t see over the line of scrimmage. He’s a sitting duck in there, especially when the scouting report catches up with him.As a short quarterback, you have to be mobile. Scrambling, being able to create extra passing lanes and angles with your feet, is the only way to survive. Ask Drew Brees and Michael Vick. That reality is independent of how well you throw or read defenses, at both of which McGloin has proved to be solid.He has done exactly what he’s going to be able to do in the NFL — fill in capably for the starter should he get injured. Point proved.At this juncture, rolling with McGloin reeks of Dennis Allen and his staff trying to rack up as many wins as possible to save their jobs. Smart, perhaps, but not what’s best for the — as Davis put it — “reconstruction” of the franchise.Then there’s what we don’t know: Is Pryor something special?"

–Marcus Thompson II, San Jose Mercury News