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Originally Posted by JIGGY
LETS NOT FORGET:
MOST OF THE STUFF YOU FIND ONLINE (HERE) IS ABSOLUTE GARBAGE AND WILL ONLY GET YOU INTO MORE TROUBLE.
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How nice. Show up, and in less than a week, pass judgment on an entire board of baseball officials. You are a piece of work, my friend.
For the rookie umpire, here are a few suggestions, some of which may have already been covered.
I'll tell you what I tell all of our rookie umpires. Now that you've decided to become an umpire there are several things you should do to help you along as you get started. The first and probably the most important thing to do in order to become a good umpire is to diligently study the rules of the game and learn how to apply them in real game situations. The rulebook itself can be very dry reading and difficult to understand at times. However, there are numerous suplemental resources to the rule book that contain case plays and detailed interpretations. A good place to start would be to make sure you get copies of the J/R manual and the PBUC. The rules that seem to give new umpires the most problems are 7.06 and 7.09. These are the rules covering obstruction and interference. I strongly suggest you try to learn these rules before you begin working games. You'll find that even some of the seasoned veterans on this board still debate these two rules at times.
I recommend that you get yourself out to a clinic or two There will no doubt be some excellent umpires at the clinic who will be more than willing to help you out. Watch them closely and pay attention to what they have to say. The on field mechanics taught at a regional clinic are instrumental in becoming a competent umpire. You should try to emulate what you see them doing. Don't be afraid to ask questions. Those instructors were all in your shoes at one time and understand that there is no such thing as a worthless question coming from a new umpire.
The next thing I recommend is to get yourself a proper uniform and decent equipment. Looking the part of an umpire when you take the field shows an air of professionalism to all the games participants. This will help you gain a measure of respect even before you call your first pitch. You don't need to go crazy and purchase all top of the line equipment in your first season. Ask other umpires around your league and see what they might recommend. A lot of times you'll find them willing to let you try certain pieces of their equipment out so you can get a feel for what works best for you. Make sure to get yourself a pair of plate shoes. If you don't want to go to the expense of purchasing an umpires pair from an equipment supplier you should at least buy a pair of steele toed black athletic shoes. Places like Wal-Mart sell them at a reasonable price.
I guess the last thing I would recommend to you would be to stay tuned to this forum. There are many excellent umpires here that are always willing to help. Sometimes we appear to fight like cats and dogs but I guess that's the nature of the beast. Jump into a discussion if you don't understand what we're talking about and ask as many questions as it takes to get yourself clear on the rule or mechanic.
Tim.