The Official Forum  

Go Back   The Official Forum > Baseball

Reply
 
LinkBack Thread Tools Rate Thread Display Modes
  #1 (permalink)  
Old Sun Aug 13, 2006, 01:15pm
Official Forum Member
 
Join Date: Aug 2000
Location: Edinburg, TX
Posts: 1,212
Send a message via ICQ to Carl Childress
Little League umpire in the regionals

The thread to which I responded has gone south. I don't know if I'll get everything in again, but....

Yesterday, my wife and I watched the Little Legion regional game between IA and MO.

The plate umpire was the best Little League umpire I've every seen on TV.

He is clearly a trained ump:

He used the Gerry Davis stance. (An umpire who followed on the West Coast seemed to want to do it but didn't know how.)

He verbalized his call on every pitch: "Ball." "Strike."

He waited for the pitch to end before making his call.

He used the umpire school hammer for strikes.

On a half swing ruled a strike, he pointed to the batter. On swinging strikes, he did not point and he simply signaled strike.

On a third strike swinging, he simply signaled strike.

He did not have dancing feet on pitches in the dirt, he kept his head steady (presumably he was tracking the pitch with his eyes).

He busted into the infield on every batted ball, mask in left hand, hat on his head.

Someone emailed privately to say the umpire lost the count twice in the same inning. My reply: Compared to what he did right, losing the count witg all the electronic counters on a national TV game was less than a pimple on an ant's a$$.

MO won, and they're going to the World Series. I imagine the umpire won't.

BTW: The only thing I saw him do wrong was call "Foul!" in a loud, commanding voice on obvious fouls. I'm told by a friend who should know that LL wants the umpires to do that.

I was surprised that the mandatory play rule was in effect as high as the regionals. They always suspend it for the World Series.

If you already replied to the other thread, you don't have to do it here. We can't rebuild the missing pieces. Gosh, I'm reminded of the midnight massacre when the Rhode Island flash struck down his posts.
__________________
Papa C
My website
Reply With Quote
  #2 (permalink)  
Old Sun Aug 13, 2006, 01:28pm
Official Forum Member
 
Join Date: Aug 2000
Location: Spokane, WA
Posts: 4,222
Quote:
Originally Posted by Carl Childress
The thread to which I responded has gone south. I don't know if I'll get everything in again, but....


If you already replied to the other thread, you don't have to do it here. We can't rebuild the missing pieces. Gosh, I'm reminded of the midnight massacre when the Rhode Island flash struck down his posts.
Carl,

I explained what happened in your thread "Missing LL Thread". Again, I apologize that some good posts had to be elminated to get rid of the nonsense.
__________________
GB
Reply With Quote
  #3 (permalink)  
Old Sun Aug 13, 2006, 02:11pm
Official Forum Member
 
Join Date: Aug 2005
Posts: 387
"I was surprised that the mandatory play rule was in effect as high as the regionals. They always suspend it for the World Series."

Carl, MPR is in effect during all levels LL Tourn'y play (has been for more than 10 years).

One could easily start a thread on the wild things that happen when LL managers don't get all the kids in ... just look at the what happened at the East Region semi-final Sat.
Reply With Quote
  #4 (permalink)  
Old Sun Aug 13, 2006, 02:12pm
Official Forum Member
 
Join Date: Aug 2000
Posts: 768
Quote:
Originally Posted by Carl Childress
Yesterday, my wife and I watched the Little Legion regional game between IA and MO.

The plate umpire was the best Little League umpire I've every seen on TV.
I agree he was very, very good. He was rock solid, had a perfectly appropriate strikezone, and as best as I could tell, never came close to missing a pitch.

He loses a couple of style points in my book for his fairly robotic, softball-style strike and out mechanics. And his shirt didn't quite fit over that +POS chest protector with 5,000 rivets.

A close second was the umpire in the first regional game, the Southeast region in Florida. Another very solid plate performance.

In fact, there hasn't been a bad plate performance yet, which supports the contention I've been making for awhile that "LL umpires" have come a long way, baby, compared to only a few years ago. Anyone who remembers "lobster claw man" will probably agree.

The only significant glitch in 5 games so far, is the blown call at 1B in the Southwest Region game, that took the game tying run off the scoreboard, in a game that finished 1-0. An unfortunate gross miss at the worst possible time.
[/QUOTE]

Quote:
MO won, and they're going to the World Series. I imagine the umpire won't.
He won't this year, because that's not the way LL regional and WS assignments work. You work one or the other, not both. This year's WS umpires are, this week, basking in the celebrity of "LLWS hype week;" they'll go to work next week. This year's regional umpires are, by their performances, positioning themselves in the pecking order for future LLWS assignments.

Quote:
I was surprised that the mandatory play rule was in effect as high as the regionals. They always suspend it for the World Series.
With respect to Little League rules, you should never say "never" or "always." The tournament rules are exactly the same at all levels of tournament play, and MPR has been part of the tournament rules, in some form or fashion, for several years now.
Reply With Quote
  #5 (permalink)  
Old Sun Aug 13, 2006, 02:21pm
Official Forum Member
 
Join Date: Aug 2000
Location: Spokane, WA
Posts: 4,222
Quote:
Originally Posted by Dave Hensley
I agree he was very, very good. He was rock solid, had a perfectly appropriate strikezone, and as best as I could tell, never came close to missing a pitch.

He loses a couple of style points in my book for his fairly robotic, softball-style strike and out mechanics. And his shirt didn't quite fit over that +POS chest protector with 5,000 rivets.

In fact, there hasn't been a bad plate performance yet, which supports the contention I've been making for awhile that "LL umpires" have come a long way, baby, compared to only a few years ago. Anyone who remembers "lobster claw man" will probably agree.
I agree. The plate umps so far are better than last year's and far superior to those of just three years ago. The work on the bases is a little off, but some of that is probably due to some less than accepted mandated mechanics. However, the missed call at first was just plain horrid and unexcusable.

The next step for the LL umps who are positioning themselves for this level is to begin working on their appearance and conditioning.
__________________
GB
Reply With Quote
  #6 (permalink)  
Old Sun Aug 13, 2006, 02:40pm
Official Forum Member
 
Join Date: Aug 2000
Location: Edinburg, TX
Posts: 1,212
Send a message via ICQ to Carl Childress
Quote:
Originally Posted by socalblue1
"I was surprised that the mandatory play rule was in effect as high as the regionals. They always suspend it for the World Series."

Carl, MPR is in effect during all levels LL Tourn'y play (has been for more than 10 years).

One could easily start a thread on the wild things that happen when LL managers don't get all the kids in ... just look at the what happened at the East Region semi-final Sat.
It is not in effect at the World Series. At least, it wasn't last year.
__________________
Papa C
My website
Reply With Quote
  #7 (permalink)  
Old Sun Aug 13, 2006, 02:56pm
Official Forum Member
 
Join Date: Nov 2000
Posts: 2,729
Wow:

I have watched parts of five regional games so far.

UNTIL todays IL/IN game (with "Mr. Let me hide my arms behind my back") I was very, very impressed by the plate umpiring.

TWO things that LL managment REQUIRES from umpires:

1) All foul balls are to be called "FOUL" loudly and clearly and,

2) All bases are to be whisked clean after any play occurs.

While these things don't fly in "big boy ball" I can look past these edicts and see that umpring at the Regional Level has become vastly better in the last three years.

We'll have to wait for Friday to begin piling on the the horrible umpires that will be working.

Well all will be poor with the expecting of "JK" who will shine.

Regards,
Reply With Quote
  #8 (permalink)  
Old Sun Aug 13, 2006, 03:08pm
CJN CJN is offline
Official Forum Member
 
Join Date: Aug 2005
Posts: 72
Quote:
Originally Posted by Tim C
I have watched parts of five regional games so far.

UNTIL todays IL/IN game (with "Mr. Let me hide my arms behind my back") I was very, very impressed by the plate umpiring.

Yeah, the IL/IN was definitely the worst PU so far in the coverage. He did a lot of smitty things including pointing to the batter on pretty much every swinging strike call, pointing to first on ball four, and (as you mentioned) hiding his hands behind his back.
Reply With Quote
  #9 (permalink)  
Old Sun Aug 13, 2006, 03:23pm
Official Forum Member
 
Join Date: Aug 2000
Posts: 768
Quote:
Originally Posted by Carl Childress
It is not in effect at the World Series. At least, it wasn't last year.
Carl, you are just plain wrong. It was in effect, in exactly the same format as this year, at last year's LLWS.

From the 2005 tournament rules published by Little League:

2005 Tournament Rules and Guidelines for
Little League Baseball
9-10 Year Old Division Baseball, 11 Year Old Division,
Junior League, Senior League and Big League Baseball

Rules: Except where noted in these Tournament Rules and Guidelines, the Little League Baseball Official Regulations and Playing Rules will be used in the conduct of the 9-10 Year Old Division Tournament, the 11 Year old Division Tournament, the Little League Baseball Tournament, Junior League, Senior League and Big League Baseball Tournaments.

TOURNAMENT PLAYING RULES

9. MANDATORY PLAY: 9-10 Year Old Division, 11 Year Old Division, Little League,
Junior League, and Senior League: Every player on a team roster shall participate
in each game for a minimum of three (3) consecutive defensive outs and
bat at least one (1) time.

Last edited by Dave Hensley; Sun Aug 13, 2006 at 03:55pm.
Reply With Quote
  #10 (permalink)  
Old Sun Aug 13, 2006, 03:51pm
Official Forum Member
 
Join Date: Aug 2001
Posts: 138
Quote:
Originally Posted by GarthB
I apologize that some good posts had to be elminated to get rid of the nonsense.
By nonsense I assume you're talking about the *****ing about LL umps and the organization as a whole again this year just like every year at this time. Yeah, come to think of it, you're right. It is a bunch of nonsense. Good call Garth!!
Reply With Quote
  #11 (permalink)  
Old Sun Aug 13, 2006, 04:23pm
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Oct 2005
Location: Lakeside, California
Posts: 6,724
Quote:
Originally Posted by spots101
By nonsense I assume you're talking about the *****ing about LL umps and the organization as a whole again this year just like every year at this time. Yeah, come to think of it, you're right. It is a bunch of nonsense. Good call Garth!!
Like I said before, all the good umpires are too busy posting on this forum to work these LL games. Plus they couldn't afford to hire Rich, Garth, and Tee, so they aren't getting the "best" umpires for their games.
__________________
Matthew 15:14, 1 Corinthians 1:23-25
Reply With Quote
  #12 (permalink)  
Old Sun Aug 13, 2006, 04:35pm
Official Forum Member
 
Join Date: Aug 2000
Location: Edinburg, TX
Posts: 1,212
Send a message via ICQ to Carl Childress
Quote:
Originally Posted by Dave Hensley
Carl, you are just plain wrong. It was in effect, in exactly the same format as this year, at last year's LLWS.

From the 2005 tournament rules published by Little League:

2005 Tournament Rules and Guidelines for
Little League Baseball
9-10 Year Old Division Baseball, 11 Year Old Division,
Junior League, Senior League and Big League Baseball

Rules: Except where noted in these Tournament Rules and Guidelines, the Little League Baseball Official Regulations and Playing Rules will be used in the conduct of the 9-10 Year Old Division Tournament, the 11 Year old Division Tournament, the Little League Baseball Tournament, Junior League, Senior League and Big League Baseball Tournaments.

TOURNAMENT PLAYING RULES

9. MANDATORY PLAY: 9-10 Year Old Division, 11 Year Old Division, Little League,
Junior League, and Senior League: Every player on a team roster shall participate
in each game for a minimum of three (3) consecutive defensive outs and
bat at least one (1) time.
I bow to superior knowledge.

Now tell me, is that the same MP rule used in the regular season?
__________________
Papa C
My website
Reply With Quote
  #13 (permalink)  
Old Sun Aug 13, 2006, 04:58pm
Official Forum Member
 
Join Date: Aug 2000
Location: Spokane, WA
Posts: 4,222
Quote:
Originally Posted by spots101
By nonsense I assume you're talking about the *****ing about LL umps and the organization as a whole again this year just like every year at this time. Yeah, come to think of it, you're right. It is a bunch of nonsense. Good call Garth!!

In the thread I deleted, NO ONE b!tched about the LL umps, nor the organization, and two LL umpires, Rich and Dave can attest to that. In fact, it contained many congratulatory comments towards the LL umpires working the televised games from so-called Big Dogs. It was an amazingly civil thread in that regard.

The only b!tching was aimed at posters.
__________________
GB
Reply With Quote
  #14 (permalink)  
Old Sun Aug 13, 2006, 05:47pm
Official Forum Member
 
Join Date: Aug 2000
Posts: 768
Quote:
Originally Posted by Carl Childress
I bow to superior knowledge.

Now tell me, is that the same MP rule used in the regular season?
No, it is relaxed from regular season. Regular season MPR is 6 defensive outs and 1 at bat. Tournament is 3 consecutive defensive outs and 1 at bat.

Years ago, there was no MPR in tournament play. When they first introduced it, it was only at 12 and under levels (Juniors, Seniors and Big League had no MPR requirement) and it was a very easy to comply with 3 defensive outs OR 1 at bat. That eventually turned into 3 CDO AND 1 at bat, and in recent years they've expanded MPR requirements to, first, Junior League, and then, this year for the first time, Senior League (15-16). The only division exempt from MPR today is Big League (17-18).
Reply With Quote
  #15 (permalink)  
Old Sun Aug 13, 2006, 06:13pm
Official Forum Member
 
Join Date: Jul 2004
Posts: 123
Send a message via AIM to Peruvian Send a message via Yahoo to Peruvian
Quote:
Originally Posted by Tim C

2) All bases are to be whisked clean after any play occurs.
Oh, good grief, I saw the third base umpire do that and almost s*** my pants. LL management mandates that?!?!
Reply With Quote
Reply

Bookmarks

Thread Tools
Display Modes Rate This Thread
Rate This Thread:

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is On
Trackbacks are On
Pingbacks are On
Refbacks are On


Similar Threads
Thread Thread Starter Forum Replies Last Post
umpire threatened during adult league game jumpmaster Baseball 7 Tue Aug 02, 2005 10:27am
Little League - other league participation RustyWinslow Baseball 2 Tue May 11, 2004 01:26am
little league umpire patches milfordumpireinchief Baseball 6 Wed Aug 13, 2003 11:55pm
Regionals Duke Softball 0 Thu Jun 19, 2003 03:00pm
2003 Major League Umpire Crews johnSandlin Baseball 5 Wed Apr 02, 2003 09:01am


All times are GMT -5. The time now is 05:15am.



Search Engine Friendly URLs by vBSEO 3.3.0 RC1