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Originally Posted by PeteBooth
Congrats Garth
Also, is it still true that once you get to triple A you have one maybe 2 yrs. to make it and if you are not chosen you are let go?
The reason I ask, is that my assignor had a friend that made it to Triple A. He worked there 1-2 yrs (can't remember the exact time but it wasn't long) and simply received a letter in the mail that stated
Therefore, in your article perhaps you can also cronicle what happens to umpires after triple A who do not make it. Do they have to start all over again?
Pete Booth
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Pete:
I don't believe there is a set number of years one can work in AAA ball. There are many factors, their rating (performance), age (don't tell anybody) and the timing of opennings and projected opennings among others.
I know of umpires who have spent five years in AAA and were released.
Timing becomes as critical an issue as talent. If you've spent 13 years in the minors and are approaching 40 years old and there are no projected oppening in MLB for four or five years, chances are you're done. There are a lot of younger guys below you who have developed and deserve to be moved up.
It isn't a particularly gentle or kind business. Matt has his eyes wide open. When he first decided this was what he wanted in live, he read Rick Roder's, "The Narrowest Door in Baseball." He then went to several pro clinics and camps and talked endlessly with A, AA and AAA umpires about their experiences and lifestyle. Some of the friends he made were later released and some self-released, so he knows about that reality.
He wants to give it his best shot. I'm proud just that he was willing to go for it and not settle for having a regret later in life for not trying. We've had some talks while he was growing up and he knows that his dad had a couple of opportunities (not in umpiring) that he didn't pursue because he was comfortable where he was and wasn't willing to take the risk necessary to reach for the gold ring. I've always been honest about the few regrets I have about that and have encouraged him to be braver than his dad was.
Thankfully, he is.