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I find interesting all this talk about "So-and-so was a good umpire," because one has to wonder at what point do we focus on the "was" a good umpire and wonder if said person still is a good umpire.
After he retired, Johnny Carson was asked why he retired when he did, why he retired when he was still good, still funny, still relevant. Carson replied that he would rather go out while still at the top of his game, having people tell him, "You didn't have to retire; you were still good," rather than retiring too late and having people tell him, "You should have retired years ago."
I wonder if we can say this about some MLB Umpires or even about ourselves. I hope I stand by my promise I made to myself, that being when I am no longer able to physically umpire, or when I believe I am hurting the game, I will retire. The game deserves me at my best, in good enough condition to do an excellent job. When my abilities tank, it's time to go.
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