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Old Mon Mar 26, 2007, 11:18am
David B David B is offline
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Join Date: Aug 2000
Location: Mississippi
Posts: 1,772
Quote:
Originally Posted by w_sohl
Get to a JV game and home team is taking infield. Visitors are in outfield throwing warm up. I inform they that while the home team is taking infield they need to be in the dugout for safety. The head coach goes on his rant that the kids need to warm up, I promise him that his kids will get their time to warm up. He continues to rant (I've been doing this for 16 years, etc.) but leaves the field asking for my name and assignors name, I give it to him and even offer to spell my last name as it isn't a common spelling. He declines my offer. I ask his kids to have their bats and helmets ready for me to check and he tells me that they don’t have time for that right now they have to warm-up. “Is that the way it’s going to be coach, was my response. When they finally do get their things together he just tosses the stuff out on the field for me to pick up and look at. He then hops on his cell phone to call one of the members of the association that he has on speed dial. That member informs him that as a courtesy they can warm-up in the outfield as long as they are out of the way, the coach then informs him of the situation described above and hands me the phone and this person tells me the same thing, but then goes on to say that by the book I am right. I made a point to say out loud while the coach was standing there, that it was fine as long as he knew that by the book I was right. I felt like my fellow official hung me out to dry and I called him the next day and told him as much. I have always enforced it this way because it was the way I was taught when I worked in Illinois, Indiana and hand not been informed to enforce it any differently here in California. They will bring it up in the meeting on Monday, I’ll be out of town on business, and hopefully we can get some sort of consistency.
We have game administrators at each contest that regulate pre-game stuff.
We don't have jurisdiction until we enter the field, and especially for a JV game - its just not that big a deal.

Now once I enter the field, then I'll tell a coach to clear the field etc., I have noticed a team in violation before as I was getting dressed in the dressing room (several of our fields have dressing areas for the umpires)

I found a runner to inform the coach that they needed to fix the situation and let them handle it.

I'm sorry, but I'm never letting a coach run over me once I'm on the field.
If he doesn't like it tough, see you later.

Thanks
David
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