MLB replay confirmed to be broken after Tigers' season nearly gets screwed in ALDS

Had the Detroit Tigers not escaped ALDS Game 5 in the bottom of the 12th inning with a miracle double play, this undoubtedly would've been a messy conversation for the remainder of the playoffs and throughout the offseason.

The Seattle Mariners had a runner on first with nobody out. Victor Robles stood in the batter's box as Tigers right-hander Keider Montero was trying to pitch his second clean frame while manager AJ Hinch emptied his bullpen.

Seattle had plenty of opportunities to score in this game, but bizarrely chose not to bunt runners over on multiple occasions. In the 12th, though, they finally gave in, and Robles got the green light to lay one down.

Montero's offering on Robles' bunt attempt was high and inside. Robles aggressively squared up, occupying much of the plate as the ball came up and in. He attempted to pull back the bunt, but was unsuccessful. The 95 MPH sinker was headed directly for him.

The ball ricocheted off his bat and trickled in front of the plate. It also got a piece of his hand, which had the umpires initially rule that Robles was hit by the pitch. But the Tigers challenged because of the late-game situation, seemingly with nothing to lose.

In the slow-motion replay, it was evident the ball hit the bat first and then Robles' hand, which would mean it should have been ruled a foul ball. Easy enough, right? New York should get this one correct and call it in.

Nope! After a lengthy delay, it was upheld as a hit-by-pitch and the M's had runners on first and second with nobody out in a do-or-die playoff game. Are we kidding?

MLB replay confirmed to be broken after Tigers' season nearly gets screwed

How many times, this season alone, have we seen the replay system uphold the wrong call or overturn the correct call? It's probably more of the former due to the "inconclusive evidence" stature that can sometimes make the review system moot, but it's still baffling how often it continues to happen at this magnitude. The broadcast booth saw the same replay we all did and couldn't believe the ruling on the field was upheld.

Thankfully for the Tigers (and MLB), Montero induced a flyout and then cleanly fielded a ground ball to spark an inning-ending double play as the restless crowd is reaching its wits end with the stress mounting over and over again.

At the very least, it's highly unlikely this game gets decided by another poor replay review, but this should serve as the most stark warning yet for Major League Baseball that they continue to operate partially on a broken system and can no longer afford to do so given the stakes.