Quote:
|
Originally Posted by SAump
PBUC will have to find umpires that want to work one 9 inning game for $70 a day, sleep in a lousy hotel, travel from ballpark to ballpark, eat crappy weiners, and miss HOME for 5 months a year with very little to do each day. It must be aweful boring working 3 hours a day so far away from anyone who means anything. I guess playing cards with the crew {until the penny and nickel pots wipes one out}, watching soap operas in a quaint hotel room, and getting toiletries or a refreshment at the local stop-n-shop fill up a LONG day of BORDEM.
That same umpire can find two 7 inning games at a local baseball league for $100 and minutes from HOME. Oh did I mention that he can work for a decent living each day, rather than driving across the state on 25 cents a mile and $20 a day. He can maintain a relationship with people who share the same household and establish a daily routine in a familiar setting. He can actually learn to enjoy his life, seek relationships, employment or education opportunities. Hell, spend a summer day on the lake fishing. It sure sounds a lot better than staring at the beautiful Appalachian Mountains all day.
|
SAUmp,
You hit is right on the nail. The current system just doesn't work anymore. The AMLU knows it and PBUC knows it. MiLB has been getting away with murder the last 10 years - basically having high quality officiating and paying next to nothing for it.
Now that it's time to annie up, they just don't feel that umpiring is worth any more of an investment. After all, why put more money into something that doesn't generate more revenue for the owners. Remember, MiLB is all about filling stadiums and the quality of umpiring really doesn't have anything to do with putting fans in the seats.
With that said, if the AMLU doesn't want to supply the umpires, then they will "outsource" the work. That's where the Regional Assignors come in - they will negotiate a game fee with the League Presidents just like the NCAA Umpire Supervisors negotiate with the indivual Conferences. The current MiLB umpires will now become individual contractors just like the rest of us. They can move back home and have real jobs and umpire as an advocation rather than a career.
MiLB will probably pay more money per game to individual contractors - perhaps $100 for A, $125 for AA and $150 per game at AAA but will save money in the end becuase they won't have "employee" costs, ie. insurance. In turn, umpires will get to have their own lives back and don't have to be away from family and eat cold hot dogs for six months of the year anymore. All in all, this will work out best for everyone involved.
Again, this is just my opinion - none of this is factual but rather just speculation.