[RPatrino]

SM, you did good!!! I applaud your restraint in not blasting that moron partner of yours. Don't let a dufus like that discourage you, keep plugging away!!

I'm not a 30 year umpire, but I'm not a rookie. I tell my partner's in our pre-game, don't come in and talk to me during the game!! We have some chatter box guys in our association who love to spend time just chatting away, and I find that looks awful as well as it breaks my focus during the game. If there is something VERY IMPORTANT that you need to communicate with me, then signal me and we can meet between innings.

I once had a very "big dog" call time in the middle of an inning, to tell a member of our 3 man crew that he blew a coverage. That is a NO NO in my book, and I have not worked with that man since, and that occured in 1999.