1. Baseball gets so many things wrong. And now we can add foul poles to the list.
With the Rays having to play their home games in the Yankees’s minor league stadium this year after Tropicana Field suffered massive damage from Hurricane Milton back in October, Major League Baseball didn’t bother to pay attention to details.
We learned on Sunday that the foul poles at George Steinbrenner Field aren’t nearly as high as the foul polls in MLB stadiums. We learned this because Aaron Judge hit a home that was ruled foul even though it wasn’t foul.
How is this ball foul lmao pic.twitter.com/u5QNmJGe1O
— Dillard Barnhart (@BarnHasSpoken2) April 20, 2025
You would think, with MLB knowing the Rays were going to play in the minor league ballpark six months before the start of the regular season that it would’ve tried to make sure, as much as possible, that it was up to big league standards, which would’ve included putting in the correct foul poles. But paying attention to detail isn’t MLB’s strong suit because this is a very fixable problem.
The missed call on the home run didn’t really matter in the result of the game. The Yankees were up 3–0 when Judge hit the homer-that-wasn’t-called-a-homer and they won the game 4–0, so no harm, no foul.
However, the humiliation for the sport got even worse when the ball was still ruled foul after instant replay. And replay showed that the ball wasn’t even close to being foul. Just full blown incompetence.
While baseball, the umpires and the replay system all embarrassed themselves on Sunday, Judge showed how things are supposed to be done by dropping a classy quote after the game.
Aaron Judge on the HR that wasn't: "It was a fair ball. It's just tough in a situation like this, in a Minor League park where the foul poles aren't that high. ... They missed it and we've just got to move on."
— Bryan Hoch ⚾️ (@BryanHoch) April 20, 2025
2. This news dropped on Friday and it’s significant. If your NBA team is currently in the playoffs, you have the option of watching them on a local sports cable channel in your market or the national telecast on either ESPN/ABC and TNT. However, that will end next season. Starting with the 2025–26 season, all playoff games will only air nationally. So, if you’re a fan who loves listening to your local broadcasters for the first round, enjoy it this season, because they will be shut out of calling first-round playoff games starting next season.
New at @SBJ: The @NBA's new national TV partners will have exclusive rights to the first round of the playoffs, meaning RSNs will lose their in-market telecasts of those games. @TomFriendWriter and I have details and look at whether the @NHL may be next. https://t.co/48M8b181dT
— Alex M. Silverman🏒⚽️ (@AlexMSilverman) April 18, 2025
3. WrestleMania 41 is going to be known for two things: the worst and dumbest WrestleMania main event of all time and people getting hit by moving vehicles.
Stone Cold crashed his 4-Wheeler during his entrance.#WrestleMania
— Wrestle Ops (@WrestleOps) April 21, 2025
pic.twitter.com/iTE8J8jWV1
A fan got hit outside after WrestleMania 41.
— Wrestle Ops (@WrestleOps) April 21, 2025
(🎥: @elliiuudd)
pic.twitter.com/KsTwpvOaG7
4. One of the good things about Inside the NBA continuing next season despite TNT losing the NBA is that we’ll still be able to enjoy Kenny Smith and Shaq roasting Charles Barkley for never winning a championship.
Chuck: "The guy that got you your two trophies"
— NBA on TNT (@NBAonTNT) April 20, 2025
Kenny: "Who got you yours? Oops nobody" 😭 pic.twitter.com/PJzqrSRlU3
5. This is an excellent read on how the NFL draft has become a big betting event and why bookmakers hate it.
"Bookmakers hate the draft. We torch five to six figures a year on it." -- @JeffreyBenson12
— Ben Fawkes (@BFawkes22) April 21, 2025
Spoke with five oddsmakers and a couple sharp bettors in my latest piece for @YahooSports on why sportsbooks dislike booking the #NFLDraft:https://t.co/OSi16z0lWy
6. This week’s SI Media With Jimmy Traina features an interview with TNT's Charles Barkley.
Barkley reveals whether he’s happy or unhappy with TNT’s decision to continue Inside the NBA but air it on ESPN, explains why he’s still upset with how TNT has handled things and lays down the law about how much he’s going to work going forward and why he has no interest in fulfilling the final seven years of his contract.
Barkley also expresses regret over recently saying, “Y’all got some big b-----s here” regarding San Antonio women, shares his frustrations over Stephen A. Smith’s possible presidential run, weighs in on the NBA playoffs and explains why the Lakers have no shot to win the NBA Finals.
Following Barkley, Sal Licata from WFAN radio and SNY TV in New York joins the show for the weekly “Traina Thoughts” segment. This week’s topics include the Masters, the Chiefs getting their request to be the traditional Christmas Day team turned down and a great new WrestleMania doc. In addition, I reads March's Apple reviews for SI Media With Jimmy Traina.
You can listen to the SI Media With Jimmy Traina podcast below or on Apple and Spotify.
You can also watch SI Media With Jimmy Traina on Sports Illustrated‘s YouTube channel.
Given that the NFL draft begins Thursday, I also want to plug the previous episode with Mel Kiper because he was outstanding. If you haven’t listened or watched yet, make sure you check it out.
7. RANDOM VIDEO OF THE DAY: I was happy to see today is Tony Danza’s 74th birthday because it gives me the opportunity to post this clip. I’m a huge Taxi fan and I’m fascinated by Andy Kaufman’s career. Danza talking about what it was like to work with Kaufman is a must-watch for any hardcore sitcom fan.
Be sure to catch up on past editions of Traina Thoughts and check out the Sports Illustrated Media Podcast hosted by Jimmy Traina on Apple, Spotify or Google. You can also follow Jimmy on X and Instagram.
This article was originally published on www.si.com as Aaron Judge Home Run Fiasco Highlights MLB Incompetence.
