Being a female umpire doing men's, college and varsity games, I get a lot of stares and also hesitancy from coaches and players when I arrive at the ball field. I dress and carry myself professionally, but I try to never come across as a ball-busting _itch. I've had some good ice-breaking humor with catchers during a game when I am out of baseballs and mention it. I've had catchers stand up and loadly announce, "She needs balls," or "She doesn't have any balls!" They then get embarassed and apologize. I respond with "No problem, it's the truth!" or, "I really do need balls." We share a good laugh with the batter, and the I see a shift at that point. I'm usually treated as one of the guys after that.(Is that a compliment?)
Jackie W.
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