Quote:
Originally Posted by Blue37
JM,
I suggest you take a step back and breathe deeply. Some of your recent posts have not been up to your usual standards and this is one of them. Your rules and mechanics knowledge is beyond most, but a few of your statements on the other aspects of umpiring reveal that you are still a "young" umpire. Your position on this play puts you out on a limb with a saw in your hand. A wise man once said, "When you find yourself in a hole, quit digging."
Most of the 18U ball around here is pretty good, but there are some inner-city teams that are dreadful and this was one of them. For the most part, these players are the ones left over after the school teams, the travel teams, and the regular league teams have made their selections. The kids are very respectful and hustle their butts off, but their skill level is such that every play is a potential third world play. The coaches are equally inept, but I applaud their willingness to spend time with these young men. It is not our responsibility to save a coach or player from his mistake. I think you are letting your past come out when you suggest an umpire should interject themselves into a game in that manner.
There was no deficiency in the umpiring. The ball landed fair, and was signaled fair. To the best of my knowledge, they only person who thought it was foul was the first base coach.
There are no esoteric discussions in my games and I do not decide how to call a batter out. I let the rules make that decision for me. I explained the call to both coaches in less than 15 seconds and the game proceeded.
The point of sharing situations like this on the board is so others will know how to handle them if they come up. I hope those who read this thread will be able to parse the good suggestions from the bad.
I honestly admire, and even envy, your ability to quickly grasp the nuances of rules and appreciate the way you, for the most part, keep yourself above the fray when the discussion denigrates. I hope you are around for many years to come!
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So if a B/R came walking back to the plate to retake his position in the batter's box, perhaps he saw something that may have suggested the ball was indeed foul. I happen to agree with "a tree falling in the middle of the woods" analogy. Making an abandonment call in this situation may have brought down the forrest. Now what if instead of walking away after your 15 second explanation, the coach refused to accept your explanation and requested to protest your abandonment call?
The obstruction by an umpire idea was a downright clever addition. What should happen when an umpire is signalling a fair ball and the players themselves aren't buying it? I would begin to think, well, maybve grandpa was a better umpire or had a better view. Can we put everyone back, add a strike to the count, if needed, and play it over again? I'm not saying this is the best choice, just providing an alternate point of view.