Has Major League Baseball Commissioner Alan “Bud” Selig finally seen the light? According to an Associated Press article by AP Baseball Writer Ben Walker, MLB executive vice president for baseball operations Jimmie Lee Solomon is pushing to get instant replay instituted by August 1st and has found a receptive audience in the once staunchly opposed Selig.

The baseball world has been calling for Selig to institute instant replay over the past couple years, with the calls turning into shouts this season after a rash of blown home run calls, including one during a Phillies game that cost the Phils a win.

The idea is that by instituting instant replay for home runs by August 1st, it would give the league enough time to fine tune it in time for the playoffs. According to Walker,

MLB and the umpires’ union need to reach agreement before replay can be tried, and the sides have started talking. Previously, it was thought replay would get its first look in the Arizona Fall League and then the 2009 World Baseball Classic.

In addition to fans and commentators, players have been lobbying for instant replay, as they stand to gain more out of its implementation than anyone.

“The game needs it and I think it does need it soon,” said former Phillie’s pitcher Jon Lieber. “With technology the way it is today, there’s no reason why it shouldn’t be a part of the game.”

That being said, nothing has been finalized as of yet. There is still time for Selig to step in and squash it, as this is something he has been opposed to from the get go.

“It’s all still premature,” MLB spokesman Rich Levin said Friday. “A final decision has not been made.”

Selig is not the only one against instant replay. “I don’t think it’s needed at all, to be honest,” Cubs manager Lou Piniella said Friday. “How many times do you see players make errors? Baseball has talked about speeding up the game. It’s all you hear. All of a sudden, they want instant replay? You’re going to have slower games and more restless people in the stands.”

Despite the reservations of Piniella and others, baseball appears to be headed down the path of so many other sports before it. The NBA, NHL, NFL, NCAA and major tennis tournaments all utilize some type of replay system.

According to Walker,

A person briefed on MLB’s preliminary plan told The Associated Press that baseball wants to create an NHL-style “war room” in New York where video feeds would be reviewed by a supervisor. The umpire crew chief wouldn’t see replays— instead, the supervisor would describe what he saw, but leave it up to the umpire to make the final call.

It was not certain whether managers, umpires or the video supervisor would ask for a replay, said the person, who spoke on condition of anonymity because negotiations were in progress.

The umpires have indicated that they would be open to the idea of instant replay, after blown calls last month on home runs by the Mets’ Carlos Delgado and the Yankees’ Alex Rodriguez.

As with many new ideas in baseball, the concept of instant replay has spurred intense debate amongst its fans and insiders. Many baseball purists argue that blown calls are simply part of the game. They are worried that this could lead us down the road to replay for balls and strikes, which I personally find ridiculous.

Balls and strikes are an understood part of the game and game strategy. The strike zone changes with each umpire and this is taken into consideration by both teams. If that day’s ump is calling a very narrow strike zone, then the pitchers know they have to pitch tighter over the plate. It’s part of the strategy and, for the most part, applies equally to both teams.

A home run being called a foul ball is not fair to both teams, is not part of any team strategy, and was never intended to be part of the game. A blown home run call can often times change the outcome of a game, which can often times be all the difference between a team making the playoffs or not. The past few years, last year notwithstanding, the Phillies missed the playoffs by just one or two games. The blown home run call that ultimately cost the Phillies the game could end up costing them the playoffs if the season reflects the tightness of the NL East of the past several years.

In my opinion, instant replay is a no brainer and purists who say it will hurt the game are fools. This is not interleague play or the stupid all star game. This is an opportunity to ensure the purity of the game by making sure that the right call is made. Instant replay can’t always 100% determine if a runner was tagged out at the plate, or whether a called strike was accurate. But it can determine whether Delgado hit a home run or not, and shouldn’t we all be in favor of maintaining the integrity of the game?

I say, it’s about damn time Selig came around and removed his head from his rear. After all, Selig is the one who considers interleague play to be a significant part of his legacy, and that’s about as anti-purist as you’ll get.