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Originally Posted by SanDiegoSteve
What difference does age have to do with anything? He said he attended the association's rules and mechanics clinics for 3 years prior to working a game. That is different than a kid that just jumps right into a game situation from off the street as a "helper" (read "hinderer"). He actually studied how to be an umpire before working a game.
We had an umpire who's 13 year old son took an interest in becoming an umpire. I had the dubious "honor" of working the bases on his very first plate game. It was a Pony (13-14) game, and both his dad, and our assignor were in attendance. He actually did quite well, and continued working youth ball and then eventually HS ball when he was 16. At age 18, he went to Wendelstedts, and then UDP, and then to a job in minor league baseball.
I would rather work with a youngster who is eager to learn how to umpire the right way, who hasn't developed a lot of bad habits, than to umpire with some old Smitty who tells me to "just go along with me on checked swings," or hollers "safe" at the top of his lungs when a runner slides into a base when there is no play.
If an umpire is a dues paying, uniform wearing, gets-paid-to-umpire type umpire, than he or she is a real baseball umpire, IMO.
Steve
Defender of "real" real umpires.
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Steve I agree with both you and Tim. I was one of those who started working games at a very young age (9). I didn't realize what real umpiring was like until I stepped onto a full-size diamond for my first competitive game (college bound seniors) at 15, and was even more in shock doing my first semi-pro game at 17.
Umpiring at a young age (11-15) gives you the basic 90% of the rule book (out/safe, ball/strike, fair/foul) however you don't get a feel for the situations as well as game flow, speed of game etc. that you do at the higher levels.