We've heard of a ribbon board causing unsightly (though unintentional) glare on a basketball court, but using the technology to create a home field advantage in baseball? That's the complaint filed Monday by St. Louis Cardinals manager Tony La Russa, who alleged the upper-level ribbon board at Miller Park shed more light on the home plate area while Milwaukee batted in a game the Brewers won, 6-2.
The league contacted the Brewers on Tuesday, but general manager Doug Melvin pleaded ignorance on the issue, according to Milwaukee Journal Sentinel beat writer Tom Haudricourt. "I don't know what the specific complaint was," Melvin said. "It has been looked at. Nothing's been changed."
Umpire crew chief Gary Darling, who was the first to hear La Russa's complaint during the game, said he personally didn't notice a difference in lighting levels. "Like I told him last night, we just don't pay that much attention to it. Nothing really jumped out about it. I told him I would report it to the league, and that's what I did."
St. Louis, which trails division-leading Milwaukee in the National League Central, isn't the first team looking for some reason - nefarious or not - to explain the Brewers' success at home. The team is 40-15 at Miller Park, the best home record in baseball.
