[SanDiegoSteve]

So, I'm happy for your friend. I have nothing at all against your friend Jason. I just happened to see my association's chief instructor working the plate in the World Series, and drew my own comparision.

Jason's stance looks like it is vulnerable to balls bouncing up and hitting his throat. So what? So are most stances. Getting hit is part of the game. You have to admit that it's kind of uncanny that two different umpires came up with nearly the exact same response to your "squat" comment, at nearly the exact same time!

You keep insisting that being a D-1 umpire is this great honor, or that it guarantees a quality umpire. I know many D-1 umpires. Some are very good. Some absolutely are not. Not all D-1 umpires are top-notch officials. I have seen a few NCAA Division 1 umpires on TV that would fall into a serious "Smitty" category.

I also know quite a few really great umpires in my area who have no chance at all to work college baseball for reasons I've stated ad nauseum in the past. There are also many other quality umpires here who have no desire to advance higher than HS level. I also know of areas of the country that in order to be a college umpire, all you basically need is to have a pulse and umpire gear.

We never said that Jason wasn't a good umpire. We just thought his stance looked kind of weird. You are the one that brought it off topic by commenting over and over about his professional training and level of baseball.