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Originally Posted by Dave Hensley
What you were observing was the LL tournament version of resolving a formal protest. The protesting manager basically has an expedited escalation process all the way through (1) the umpires on the field, (2) the tournament director, (3) the regional director, and (4) the Tournament Committee in Williamsport. As long as the protesting manager refuses to accept the decision of a lower level, he has the 100% right to escalate to the next level.
During the early part of the tournament, it can result in lots and lots of calls going to Williamsport, and sometimes delays of an hour or more before a final resolution.
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There's a way around this, and I have used it.
Mgr. "We want to protest."
Me, "Please specify."
[Substiute your own here]: "That's an illegal pitch."
"No it isn't. This is a judgment call, ergo, no protest will be heard. Play on, MacDuff."
"But the rule book says ..."
"No protest shall be considered on a decision involving an umpire's judgment."
"I'm not happy with that."
"And I'm not happy that this taking so long. Find a seat and resume coahing."
Since the protest is not considered in the first place, there's no need to go through the LL food chain and hold up the game. We have used this standard in our area, and it has cut protests by about 80%.
IMHO, too many LL umps (and admins) panic when they hear the p-word and get on the phone right away.
It gets silly. In a state game (which I did not work or witness), a protest went to Bristol. It was over a--don't gag now--batter who swung and missed at a pitch that hit him. PU didn't know what to do. Neither did his pards. Brain-addled site director had to get on the phone.
I have only (personally) seen two valid protests. One was over an illgeal pitcher (and was upheld). The other was over a misinterpretation of a rule (by me; I kicked it). I lucked out. Back in those days, there was not "protest must be heard before game continues" rule. The protesting team won the game, so there was no need to progress further.
Ace