re: A good rule of thumb for when to grip about refs after your team got beat

That is way too simple minded.

Officiating can absolutely affect a game to swing all sorts of ways. One bad call in football could cause a team to lose a score while also setting up a score for the opposing team. Basically like a 14 point swing.

Basketball is heavily influenced by officiating. They could get one team in foul trouble and really affect depth.

I’ll give you baseball somewhat. Even with inconsistent calls the batter can still attempt to hit the ball. And 3 runs is a lot in baseball. Baseball isn’t really affected like the other sports. Of course one team getting squeezed while pitching could influence the outcome, but there are multiple ways to get outs. It isn’t quite the same as refs in football extended drives due to bogus penalties. Umps can be inconsistent, but it is usually both ways. Imagine if they go to automated strike zones then there won’t be much to bitch about. I very much support this. It would save a lot of frustration and potential anger over inconsistent calls.