insatty, how does the crew system work for your organization? The organization I belong to primarily, uses this system: long time vet (sometimes a dozen years or more) is white hat, while a medium-tenure vet (sometimes 5 to 10 years) ends up being the umpire most of the time (that is if the whole crew is able to work that game), while the "younger" guns on the crew (less than 5 years normally) work the line. However, there are times when some of the younger guys who work the lines have an opportunity to be the umpire if the usual person is not available for that game.