Instant replay needs to be a part of MLB and every sport

When you think about it, there really is an inexorable march towards instant replay. I'm talking beyond the latest discussion of just foul balls and home runs in baseball, but for every play in every sport. The technology is there, and, more importantly, the way fans watch the game is so much more advanced now. With HD, instant replay and Tivo, every fan now sees every play and knows exactly what the right call should be. Do we really expect a bunch of 60-year-old dudes running up and down the sidelines to decide games that are watched by MILLIONS of viewers?!? If I were commissioner of any of the major leagues, I'd be figuring out how to get to 100% technology-monitored games -- no human refs/umps (or human error) -- within 5 years. Period.

Rebuttal
My point is that the human element *will* be removed because technology will force it to happen. This won't happen next year, or probably even in 10 years, but we will have computer-officiated games, like it or not. There actually shouldn't be that many "judgment" calls -- did the O tackle hold? put sensors on the defensive players jerseys; did the runner go outside the basepath? put laser lines between the bases. A lot of so-called "subjective" plays really just mean "the shit went down so fast, we don't really know what the hell happened." And, in the long run, fans won't stand for that. The question will always be posed: if we use technology for X, why don't we also use it for Y? Until, eventually, human error in officiating, will be gone.

I'm not really sure if you mean (1) you want the human element removed or (2) you merely think the human element will be removed. Doesn't matter, you're crazy. While I can see balls and strikes going automated and the various line calls (tennis, football, baseball, hockey), but not the many judgment calls -- holding, hooking, basepath interference, intentional fouls, etc. You don't want a ref taking into consideration whether it's period one of regular season game vs the 2nd OT of game 7 of the Stanley Cup Finals, or that Randy Moss' legs merely got cuaght up with Chuck Woodson's legs? Hey, let's just take the players out of the game and run a random simulation on the computer and broadcast it in 3D images straight to your virtual reality goggles and skip the beer line at Lambeau. Sounds awesome.