Putting the Game in Blues Hands

[Phil Vivenzio]

Why do I umpire? I do not umpire for the money, however, without the money, I couldn't umpire. Let me explain, its not for the cost of the gear and uniform, its not for the cost of gas, its how I justify to my family why I am away so much in the spring, summer and early fall. My wife knows that I would umpire for free as long as I could be at a baseball game. Umpiring to me is a passion. I spend all my free time thinking about umpiring. The days that I have a game to umpire, I can hardly perform my normal job. I guess that I am possessed. I go to the game with a smile on my face and I leave the game with a smile. I critique my performance after every game and vow to try and improve.

I have been very fortunate in my seven years of umpiring(LL, Varsity, Senior American legion and MSBL)to have worked with very competent partners, but you really can tell the difference when someone is really doing it "for the Money". Their uniform is ragged, their attitude is terrible, their rules knowledge is questonable and their mechanics are horrible. So I don't care whether you umpire as a passion or for the money, what I care about is that you are professional in your approach.