Critique Please - Topic 1: Plate Stance

[UmpJM]

Gentlemen,

I have never seen what I look like while umpiring, so I got someone to come to a game I was working yesterday and take some photos. It was very interesting to me to see the pix. I learned some things about what I was doing - that I had thought I was doing differently.

I've already formed some opinions from looking at the photos about some things I need to work on & some things I think I'm doing OK on.

I thought I would solicit feedback from the members of this forum, because I'm sure there are additional things that you will notice that I have not.

So, let 'er rip; feel free to be brutally honest. My feelings aren't hurt very easily and I'm just interested in improving.

I have posted 6 photos, taken from different angles, of me working the plate at the following link:

http://www.putfile.com/coachjm/images/101509



The game is a 14U Travel game and I am working solo. My intent is to be conforming to the "heel-toe-heel-toe" stance I was taught at the Desert Classic.

These three are a sequence of 3 shots on the same pitch:



If this proves interesting to the members, I will post some additional photos showing some different aspects of the game so you can all have some fun telling me what I'm doing wrong ( ) and maybe we can all learn something.

JM