First Game Tonight

[Baseball_North]

I've got my first assignment of the year tonight. I have got the dish on a Midget (17-18 yr olds) game.

I had my opener last week as a player and my first tonight as an umpire...

I'm not quite sure why I started this thread, but I'm sure I'll have something interesting to report after the game.

[DownTownTonyBrown]

Where do they find enough 17-18 year old midgets to form a team, let alone a league?

Just funnin'

Good luck. Concentrate on every pitch.

[Jay R]

As a fellow canuck, I am also starting this week. We had a good clinic yesterday in our province. Now I am rearing to go. I have my first assignment on the weekend.

[Baseball_North]

You guys aren't going to believe what happened in my first game of the season tonight.....

First of all, I had a banger at the plate in the top of the 1st.... called the guy out, minimal complaining... nice to be woken up early with a banger....

Anyway... top of the 7th inning... .visiting team is down by 6 or 7 runs.... batter is up with 2 strikes on him. Pitch comes in, and paints the outside corner of the plate (in my opinion). The batter, as he is walking away across the plate, mumbling things under his breath... reaches his bat to the ground and draws where he thought the pitch was! Unbelieveable! After all the discussion on the board, what are the chances.... if he had just said something, I would keep him in, but the drawing of the line was deliberately showing me up, and I had to remove him from the game.

This team only had 9 players, and in our league you can't continue with less than 9...

Game over.

Manager is irate, saying the usual things a coach would say in the situation, and asked if I was even carded. I said "Yes, my card is in my car, do you want me to get it for you?" He said yes, so I did and showed it to him... he was calmer when I went back and talked to him. I think he will plan on writing a complaint to the league or something... good luck to him on that.

Interesting first night.....

[nickrego]

You handled everything well, except...

Next time, tell him to get a copy of your card from your assignor. And don't carry your card. All he was trying to do was show you up. He was not impressed, nor did he care that you had a card.

Never leave the field and then return. You are putting yourself at risk from the coach, a player or fan. Just briskly leave the field immediately after all your duties are completed.

Have great games !

[Baseball_North]

I agree with you 100%.

My partner and I mulled over it for a few minutes, and I didn't know if I should go back or not, it probably wasn't a good idea... you never know the guy could be a psycho and punch me or something.

I'll remember that for the future...

Well at least the first game of the season is out of the way.

[Rich]

Originally posted by Baseball_North
You guys aren't going to believe what happened in my first game of the season tonight.....

First of all, I had a banger at the plate in the top of the 1st.... called the guy out, minimal complaining... nice to be woken up early with a banger....

Anyway... top of the 7th inning... .visiting team is down by 6 or 7 runs.... batter is up with 2 strikes on him. Pitch comes in, and paints the outside corner of the plate (in my opinion). The batter, as he is walking away across the plate, mumbling things under his breath... reaches his bat to the ground and draws where he thought the pitch was! Unbelieveable! After all the discussion on the board, what are the chances.... if he had just said something, I would keep him in, but the drawing of the line was deliberately showing me up, and I had to remove him from the game.

This team only had 9 players, and in our league you can't continue with less than 9...

Game over.

Manager is irate, saying the usual things a coach would say in the situation, and asked if I was even carded. I said "Yes, my card is in my car, do you want me to get it for you?" He said yes, so I did and showed it to him... he was calmer when I went back and talked to him. I think he will plan on writing a complaint to the league or something... good luck to him on that.

Interesting first night.....

Tell the coach to call the assignor if he wants your name. Get out of there.

And good for you for ejecting the line drawer.

[Baseball_North]

Ya, once again that was stupid of me to go back.

Maybe I got off easy because the coach was calmer... I know in our associations, coaches can ask for cards before the game starts... but that is before and this is after.

I still can't believe the guy drew a line... I guess it's just weird that no player ever did that to me, and I was just reading about it on these boards.

[nickrego]

That’s why we read these boards…To Be Prepared !

[Rich]

Originally posted by Baseball_North
Ya, once again that was stupid of me to go back.

Maybe I got off easy because the coach was calmer... I know in our associations, coaches can ask for cards before the game starts... but that is before and this is after.

I still can't believe the guy drew a line... I guess it's just weird that no player ever did that to me, and I was just reading about it on these boards.

I will try to head this off if I can. If I see the bat heading towards the dirt, I will try to keep the batter from getting himself tossed. I've cut off a few batters this way and have only ejected one or two line-drawers in 15+ years.

--Rich

[Baseball_North]

It all just happened, there is no way I could have stopped it.... the pitch was all over the corner, and I didn't expect any significant reaction from the batter.

[tiger49]

Baseball North don't show your card during or after a game to anyone. The OBA requires that when a coach wants to see your card he is to ask before the game. Even if you didn't have your card there is nothing that could've been done at that point.

[Baseball_North]

Tiger,

Ya, I know I was wrong in that aspect of the situation. I have spoken with my people in the association, and they advised me that I should not have done it. I just wasn't thinking at the time.

Thanks.