Why was Xander Bogaerts called for shift violation during game vs Giants? MLB officials' controversial call against the Padres, explained

Xander Bogaerts was called for a shift violation in the game against the San Francisco Giants. A call in favor of the Padres shortstop was overturned as a result of the review.

A shift violation call can occur in a game for a number of mistakes by the fielding team. The most notable of these are having three fielders on one side of the field or if a fielder starts their position on the grass outside the basepath area.

Patrick Bailey led off in the ninth inning of the game between the Giants and Padres. On a 0-1 count, Bailey had a ground hit toward the Padres shortstop and was out at first base after a routine play.

However, the Giants reviewed the challenge as they felt Bogaerts' starting position was unusual. Upon review, Xander Bogaerts was called for a shift violation for having started from the grass outside the infield playing area.

This resulted in Bailey returning to the plate for his at-bat and a ball being counted in place of the pitch. He started again with a 1-1 count. Some fans were confused as it seemed Bogaerts was inside the limitations of the infield playing area.

Padres defeated the giants 4-0 to wrap up the four-game series.

Padres win series against rivals after a 3-game comeback

The division rivalry between the Padres and the Giants went down to the last of the four-game series. San Diego overcame the road team after San Francisco had taken the lead after the series opener.

Regardless of the series win, the Padres are 5.5 games behind their division rivals and still out of contention for the NL Wild Card spots for the postseason. The Giants meanwhile are tied with the Marlins, Diamondbacks, and the Reds for the last spot.