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Originally Posted by dontcallmeblue
That's where I disagree. The game will change. All the field personnel will know that those umpires are not professionals and they will be treated as such. The game will actually be MORE difficult to officiate than "usual" because of this. At its crux, MiLB is about player development. You think an A ball manager is going to stand for inconsistent umpiring night in and night out? I'm not saying that everyone who works as a replacement will be incompetent, yet one of the biggest differences b/w a pro and an amateur is that the pro does it every night, and does it well every night. Don't kid yourself, it will be an entirely different game.
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That is absolute rubbish...the players don't care if it's Joe Brinkmann or Joe Smith out there. The managers may try to test them and see how far they can go, but that's the same story on any field with new umpires. The league will support the umpires in almost any hairy situation. Team personnel will be warned that behavior will be strictly monitored.
Do I think that an A level skipper will stand for inconsistent umpiring with replacement umpires? Yes, since he has no choice! Come on...admit it, that's a really bad argument. Most MiLB umpires at that level are anything but consistent.
The game will still be the same...the same players will be out there and the same coaches will try to pull the same nonsense. Water seeks its own level.
We are not talking about sticking underlevel umpires out there. The guys that will get more than one assignment will be hand picked and selected from the best available in that area. I've been called to go to Michigan, Minnesota, Indiana, Illinois and Ohio. I've declined all invitations and encouraged them to look locally.
Better pitchers mean it is easier to call strikes, not the opposite. Better fielding means you have to anticipate closer plays. The batters are all able to hit and want to swing the bat. A kid straight out of pro school is less proficient than a guy with ten years of college and high school varsity under his belt. Pro umpires don't work every night by the way, but I know many amateurs who do.