Quote:
Originally Posted by HugoTafurst
I'm thinking 6 man crews are used to let more deserving volunteers get on the field.
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Perhaps.
But what's more important, having the right number of umpires on the field that can cover every contingency while not clogging up the field? Or turning these crucial games into a reward system for those deserving volunteers that could very easily and negatively impact the game?
I'm not convinced that a base umpire can't chase fly balls in their areas of responsibility when the fence is 200' to 225' away on the small diamond. All three base umpires start at least 70' away from home plate. It's not like they have to make judgment calls on fair/foul, catch/no catch, etc., that are 250' or more away from them.
The fact that these dedicated volunteers are even at the regional tournaments and world series is a tribute to their work. If the standard was four-man for all games, they would all get equal opportunities, for the most part. Let the best four do the championship. Putting six of them on the field for every game does more harm than good.