Quote:
Originally posted by WindyCityBlue
David, I'll answer it for Garth and all of us.
I
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You are speaking for
"all of us?" A little presumptuous, wouldn't you say?
Your little Pro School anecdote sounds like a tongue in cheek thing intended to knock the pins out from under any student who may have the notion that he has an advantage over others because of his previous baseball experience. That's the way I see it.
You viewed it as a sweeping condemnation of previous baseball experience. That's a pretty naive interpretation. I'll bet if you took the instructors out of the learning environment, bought them a beer, and sat them down quietly, they would confess that they would rather *not* try to make somebody an umpire who has very little experience with the game of baseball.
Your experience was similar to that scene from "An Officer and a Gentleman" where Lou Gosset, Jr, says:
"The only two things from Oklahoma are steers and queers, and I don't see any horns on you boy."
I sincerely doubt whether the drill instructor gave a crap what state he was from. It's theater! And you can always tell it's theater when the instructor's comments are heavily ladened with sarcasm and humor.
That was a point that apparently went over your head.
C'mon, face it, it's fun to poke fun at coaches! I do it at times. They poke fun at the umpires. That's the dynamics. Most of it is in good fun. It's when you start truly
believing those jokes and start developing a deep layer of cynicism that it no longer becomes funny. When you start losing respect for one another - you create an unhealthy situation.
When I coach, I respect the umpires until they do something that *specifically* destroys that respect.
When I umpire, I respect the coaches until they do something that *specifically* destroys that respect.
When somebody who has coached or has played decides to throw their hat into the ring to umpire, I respect their previous baseball experience and try to build on their already-obtained knowledge.
Example: I was once discussing with a bunch of new umpires about where the best place to stand when preparing to call a play at plate. We talked about the advantages and disadvantages of the 3rd-baseline-extended and the 1st-baseline-extended. We talked about various circumstances that may dictate where one is better than the other. One of the things I mentioned is that when choosing the 3rd-baseline-extended, you may often find the on-deck batter crowding you. He may even be in your way. Don't be shy about pushing him aside.
To that, one student asked in a
very perplexed manner, "Why would the on-deck batter be by the plate? Wouldn't he be in the on-deck circle?"
There was a pause in the class. Everybody looked at him with a strange look.
He didn't know. He wasn't aware that it was a very common (and acceptable practice) for the on-deck batter to approach the plate and give instructions to his teammate. He had never played baseball ... hadn't seen many games ... and, I guess, the few games he had seen he had never noticed this occurring.
This would be just the tip of the iceberg of the countless other "insider" things he is probably unaware of that he'll have to learn for the first time while umpiring. There is certainly no time to teach him the natural flow of a baseball game *and* umpiring. He'll have to get the first part OJT ... as through
fire as the Bible says.
David Emerling
Memphis, TN
[Edited by David Emerling on Aug 25th, 2004 at 10:56 AM]