|
I'd be willing to write such an article, Garth. But would you read it?
I spend nearly as much time studying baseball tactics, strategies, drills, and instructional techniques as I do researching umpire stuff. Which do I like best? I can't really say. I love it all! That's because I love baseball. The only reason I umpire, coach, or watch it on TV is because I love *everything* about it. Baseball is my passion. It is not limited to umpiring - which is also a passion.
I would be lying if I didn't admit that being a coach effects my umpiring. It certainly does! And my umpiring equally effects my coaching. The point I've always tried to make, and one that many cannot comprehend, is that, in my opinion, the "effect" is beneficial. I can see where there is room for debate on that matter. Unfortunately, many are very closed minded on this topic. I happen to know a few in a particular private mail list who are of that mindset.
As a coach, I'm continually having to collar my fellow coaches when they say or do things that I, as an umpire, know do more harm than good. I know how to schmooze an umpire better than the average coach - and unless the umpire is really good - he won't even know he's being schmoozed. I agree 100% with everything Peter Osborne wrote in his very interesting, very controversial, and very ACCURATE article that touched upon much of this.
Example: My fellow coaches have a habit of asking our catcher "Where was that pitch, Mac?" on a close pitch. I keep telling them, "Don't put Mac in an awkward position to try to please you AND the umpire at the same time. It's a 'when did you stop beating your wife' type of question. There's no good answer. Admit it, you are only asking him that question to let the umpire know you disagreed with the call. That's chicken sh*t and umpires HATE it. It doesn't help. Stop doing it. We want the umpire to *like* our catcher."
They still did it on occasion, however. I instructed all our catchers to simply tell the coaches that the pitch was a "little low/high/outside/inside" but NEVER say, "It looked good to me" or "Right down the middle, coach."
As a coach (who umpires), I know which battles are not worth fighting and, conversely, I know which ones are.
As an umpire (who coaches), I am well aware of their tactics and I anticipate them. So, I am seldom caught by surprise. In fact, I can't help from playing the game in my head. Is that bad? I don't know. I don't find it distracting at all. Maybe it would be for somebody else.
Remember, I also train new umpires. I get former/current coaches who enter the umpire ranks on occasion. More often than not, rookie umpires (who coached) tend to be heavy-handed initially. Coaches are frequently control freaks and they bring that into their umpiring. They try to MAKE things happen instead of ALLOWING the game to take its own course. Instead of gently nudging the "train" back on the track, they try to do everything in a grandious fashion. Too much ... too soon ... too loud ... too forceful. They learn, in time, to tone it down. They are working too hard to let everybody know they are in charge.
Do coaches who umpire cut too much slack to the coaches in the games they call - as you suggest? Not the rookie umpires (who coach)!!!! Not by a long shot! They are still trying to shirk the notion that other coaches are the enemy.
Umpires flatter themselves to think that the coaches see them (the umpires) as the enemy. That is seldom the case. The coaches seldom even think about the umpires until the umpires give him a reason. Primarily, they see their OPPONENT as the enemy. It's just that the umpires get in the way, at times.
David Emerling
Memphis, TN
[Edited by David Emerling on Aug 24th, 2004 at 08:24 PM]
|