What do you allow?

[ozzy6900]

This is why I hate leagues that use OBR. They all want to be like the big guys but then when the $hit hits the fan, they all want the protection of NCAA or FED.

Well here's reality, in OBR, there is no verbal interference or obstruction. If you as a runner don't recognize your own coach's voice, that's your tough luck.

Yes, you can use the 9.01c to cover your butt but a sharp orotest committee could overrule your decision.

Now, should the opposing team be allowed to shout the things that you stated, I think not. This is youth ball not professional baseball. But the problem is if they are using OBR and straight OBR, you don't have a leg to stand on.

[gordon30307]

Originally posted by Pete in AZ
Hey guys -

I worked a tournament over the past weekend and just got notified that a protest has been filed about one of my calls. I need some help.

This tourney was 18&U and we used pro rules. The only exception was a mercy rule. During the first game, the bench chatter was pretty rude. Most of these guys knew each other and played head games. They were constantly yelling "He's going." "Throw it." "Cut two." and other nonsense. At one point I told them to cool it and the coach told me to show him where they had to stop saying anything. I glared at him and said that I would show him after the game. A few innings later, they started yelling, "Swing" on every pitch when the other team was up. Now, I'll admit that I lost it and walked towards their bench. The coach came out and I told him to knock it off. He just smiled and said that his team was doing nothing wrong. I walked back knowing that I would eject the next person who did it. The first pitch was not even delivered when his bench erupted in "Swing!" The starting pitcher was standing at the opening and laughing. I pointed at him and ejected him and the coach. It was a bad scene and the others in the dugout let me have it. My partner came in and kept the others in the dugout. I walked back to my position and directed the coach and player to leave the park. Around here, they can't even stay in the parking lot behind the fields. The game resumes and his team needs another two innings to win. As I'm walking to my car, the coach I ran comes up to me with two other parents and tells me that I'm wrong. One is holding a rule book and the other is threatening me. The coach said that he will protest the ejection and that's where we are today. He was forced to miss today's game, but his team won and is in the championship next week. I'm assigned to the dish. If he wins the appeal he can come back. If it is upheld he can't even watch from the bleachers. I need help guys.

I'm assuming the bench chatter had no effect on plays made in the field. Even if it did there's nothing that you can do about it given the rules that you were playing under. Sure it's "bush" but so is stealing when one team is blowing out another team. Read Papa C's 51 Ways To Ruin a Baseball Game. One of them I believe is making up a rule which you did in this case.

From your account here's a list of mistakes that you made.

1. Although no comments were directed at you by walking to the dugout you are percieved by the fans and teams as the agressor. What you should have done is position yourself between innings so that the Coach had to walk past you or in the middle of the inning pull your line-up card out and tell the Coach you have a question. Be sure only you and he can hear the converstion. Most of the time you can resolve the issue.

2. If you must eject someone at random don't eject the starting pitcher (especially if he throws strikes!!) or the catcher. Don't eject the Head Coach especially if he didn't say anything. If you must eject toss the assistant coach. By doing this you haven't hurt the team and you got your message across. This works most of the time.

3. If the Coach (and even if he doesn't) wins the protest and you're assigned to this game do yourself a favor and work the bases and not the plate.



[Edited by gordon30307 on Feb 6th, 2006 at 02:19 PM]

[mcrowder]

I'm of two minds here. Call me Cybil if you like.

First - once you chose to go down the road of telling the coach that his team was not allowed to chatter, THAT is the moment the coach should have protested, as it is at THAT point that you made a rules-error. Having failed to protest at that point...

Second - you were completely within your rights to eject this guy for his actions after being warned. If they overturn your ejection based on the fact that you were in fact incorrect in your assertion that his team could not chatter, I would not return.

However, I've been in many tournaments where the "must skip a game" or "ejected for the duration of the tournament" rules are overturned during protest because the nature of the original ejection were not severe enough to warrant missing more than 1 game. I've seen more than one manager who was ejected for simply arguing balls and strikes be allowed to return to coach his team. If they allow this coach to return, but make no bones to this coach that his actions (defying your authority) are not to be tolerated, then perhaps your authority will not be undermined to the point that you can not officiate this tourney.

Back to the first point now. In an OBR game, we, as umpires do NOT have the authority to prevent a team from chattering. It's bush, yes... but it's not against the rules, and your decision to essentially invent a rule here was the root of the problem. The coach was RIGHT when he told you that his team was doing nothing illegal, but he handled it wrong by not protesting right then.