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As a long time white hat, I have had to deal with an aging official's medical shortcomings.
The first time I was 35 and had an umpire in his mid-50's. We didn't see each other much during the off-season. First game of the year, he is on the ground 4 or 5 times. He was never like that. The next morning, really early, I get a call from his daughter. She asked if he worked the night before. When affirmed, she informed me that he had a stroke during the summer and was banned from officiating. She guessed he didn't tell me. I found myself a new umpire within an hour.
The last time was 15-years ago and I had an official who was fighting dementia. We let him work one last year but it was bad. I had to tell him we were going a different direction the next year.
I respected both of these guys greatly. To say it was difficult to cut them loose is an understatement. However, we have a responsibility to protect kids. We also need to protect the officials. I think being the boss prepared me for the talk. Both left with no hard feelings. The first guy even thanked me for making the decision for him.
Tough calls to make.
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