Quote:
Originally Posted by topper
Mike - I think you took my criticism to be directed towards ASA. Not so this time.  Things have been dumbed down in college in the last 3-4 years IMO. NFHS as a national presence for training umpires seems non-existent. I agree with your points BTW. |
Not really. I think the entire game has been dummied down by everyone at every level. And that is all I was pointing out. Those two issues just happened to be conveniently fresh in my mind.
[rant]
As I had pointed out recently on another site, instead of people electing to play a game or sport, they are now electing to join a group and have the game change to accommodate them. Much like the city folk who move to a rural area to get away from the rat race, but expect the 300 year old farming industry to adjust their ways of doing things because they do not care for the environment into which elected to move.
Softball has gone the same route. The FP has turned into a business of showcasing. The adult game has died in many, if not most parts of the country. The SP game has supplanted the FP game for adults, simply because it is not as demanding or time consuming. And the competition level has gone down, down, down as being the best at the lowest possible level has supplanted any pride or desire to change competition and raise the level of your game.
When I was growing up, you played ball to compete, to grow, to see who can be best. In today's world, people play for different reasons, but getting that championship trophy seems to have become a residual effect of the games being played today. Unfortunately, in an effort to reach those goals seem easier, the people promoting their specific game have manipulated many of the rules to the point that, IMO, the game is not the same. Same with the equipment. The "I should be able to use the new technology that creates the best equipment" argument would almost be acceptable if that technology affected 100% of the game, not just the offense's portion.
And while you don't particularly care for some of the reasons, they are what they are and there isn't much that umpires can do about it.
Call the rules as presented and you are an over-officious jerk according to the coaches and bystanders. Let certain things slide and you are a homer or a GAGA. If those were my only two choices, I would go with the OOJ because as umpires, we are being paid to officiate the game in accordance to the rules THE TEAMS have agreed to play by. Not the umpires, the teams. Umpires don't make the rules and are often ignored when there is an effort to offer input. We can try to explain them, massage them to a point of consistent application or just sit back and say, "screw you, this is what you asked for". Well, the massaging and explanation is the officiating corps' most effective way to try and keep the game from getting out of hand and still being able to find people willing to take part as officials.
[/rant]
Guess my point is that the mentality and reasoning we are offered is a direct effect of the game changing and our ability to explain to the umpire why we have to adjust with it.
Again, JMO