The Rangers beat the Tigers 3-2 in 11 innings Sunday thanks to a suicide squeeze from Alberto Gonzalez that gave Texas the go-ahead run. The only problem is that the ball glanced off Gonzalez’s knee after making contact, though none of the umpires saw it happen. Gonzalez would later admit as much, but wisely kept running to sell the play.

Amazingly, none of this managed to irk the frequently cantankerous Jim Leyland enough for him to call for MLB to expand instant replay, as Don Mattingly did last week.

“That’s part of the game,” Leyland said. “Sometimes you get a call like that, and sometimes you don’t.”

Does it have to be though? Pivotal points in a game, you know like extra innings of a tie baseball game, sure as hell seem like one of the logical places to allow for a review by the umpiring crew.

Stubbornly sticking to this ‘what you see if what you get’ mantra feels staler than Tony La Russa’s out of touch haircut. But as long as the always delicate “tradition of baseball” is thrown into the mix when discussing such an otherwise obvious change, we’re in for the usual uphill battle.

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In other baseball news, Toronto’s Ricky Romero was tremendous (8 IP, 2 ER) in a 5-3 win over the nearly-deceased Royals, the Orioles are still over .500, the offensively inept and thoroughly beat up Phillies are now all by their lonesome in last place, and Matt Kemp — who’s been owning everyone — went hitless for the first time in 10 games in a 12-0 loss to the Astros. Yes, the Astros.

[via Detroit News]