Calling Time Out

[PeteBooth]

Ok I know it's pretty much Taboo to bring other threads from different internet Forums to this one but it's the off season and I wanted to get opinions/ views from Umpires on this site which are more experienced.

Premise - 2 Person System, You have the dish We have R1 or R1/R2.

Situation:

1. There's some dust on the plate and you want to clean it quickly
2. Any other Trival type scenario in which your eyes will be away from the action for a few seconds or so.

Since your eyes are now off the "action" Do you automatically call TO (Time out)?

In my Pre-game I go over these types of things with my partner and tell him/her that I will not call TO for these trivial type matters even though my eyes are "off the action" If something does happen in that second or 2 where I have my backed turned I trust that my partner will be alert.

I am reluctant to call TO for these trvial type matters because TO is a stoppage of play. It has been my experience that once an umpire calls TIME, players relax. B1 might get add'l instructions from his coach or F2 might take a quick trip to the mound to talk to F1.

Also, when we have TIME we cannot get any of those precious outs.

Therefore, what's your style. Do you call TIME whenever your eyes are not on the action or do you trust that your partner "has your back"

Thanks

Pete Booth

[Uncle George]

I take nothing for granted. When I clean the plate, I call TO. When I get a request from a coach who wants to ask a questions, I call TO! It's my way of
making sure that nothing will happen that I will miss! It's usually during situations like I have described that someone will try to do something! When you call TO you nothing's going to happen because play has been suspended. I umpire by the game, not the clock! Same thing when working the bases!

[tibear]

I always call time whenever I do something like clean the plate.

I've seen the situation where the umpire doesn't call time and cleans the plate. Everyone relaxes and is waiting for the umpire to finish and the runners are walking non-chalantly back to the base when the pitcher picks them off. Of course the arguement ensues that the umpire was cleaning the plate and that time was called.

The PU then says time wasn't called and that the play was live. So the out counts. Then all hell breaks out because you have the runner and his manager who is all over the PU for doing something where they think he should have called time and the PU insisting that he doesn't have to call time.

If your worried about F2 going for a conference as you bend to clean, simply tell him not to go because your done in 2 seconds.

I think its best to call time and then there is no problem.

Quickly:
1) Call Time out.
2) Clean plate, Clean Glasses or whatever.
3) Call Time in with a "Let's Go" or something to indicate you want them to go quickly.

Should take no more then 5 seconds.

[Justme]

Assuming at least 2-man:

Normally if the plate isn’t very dirty I just take a passing ‘swipe’ at the plate, I do not call time. I do make sure that the action is over and that my partner(s) appears to have everything under control then I quickly clean the plate. Sometimes I just kick the dirt off as I walk by. BUT if the plate is hidden after a slide I will call time to clean the plate because it’s going to take me a few seconds.

With all that said, I was taught to always call time when cleaning the plate.....but

[mick]

Originally Posted by PeteBooth

Situation:

1. There's some dust on the plate and you want to clean it quickly
2. Any other Trival type scenario in which your eyes will be away from the action for a few seconds or so.

Since your eyes are now off the "action" Do you automatically call TO (Time out)?

I don't always call a time-out, but if something were to happen, I would employ the "pre-sumed time-out" corollary and send 'em back.

[BretMan]

Pete,

Having read the thread on "the other site", I suspect that the answers you're getting here are not the ones you want to hear!

[PeteBooth]

I do not post a question to get answers I want to hear

On this site we have some umpires with a plethora of experience.

If I am in the minority Fine but I do not get bent out of shape like some others if someone or a group of individuals have a different view.

Some aspects of Umpiring are not "cut and dry" but a matter of style. Also, we all work in different parts of the country and what works or what is taught in one part is not necessarily the same as in another part of the country.

Baseball is not a TIMED sport, we all know that and from my experience most of us want a game which has a "flow" to it. Why in the NBA does a team call a TO when the other team has momentum? Why! To slow things down and stop momentum.

When we have TIME regardless of the opinions presented, PLAY STOPS which could have an adverse effect on the flow of the game. Also, I am not talking about NOT calling a TO when we have a resasonable delay like a coach requesting TO or something along those lines.

I am talking about a "quick" clean of the plate or other similar occasions where your eyes are off the action for maybe a beat or 2.

In Summary: I do not write a post to see if others agree with me as that IMO is counter productive. We are in the off season and frankly I get tired of taking about where to purchase umpire equipment or what brand is best, etc. I brought the topic here because this Forum has been rather slow and solicit opinions / views from the masses who post here NOT to get the desired response. If you want to add value to the topic then please do so.

Pete Booth

[ozzy6900]

I don't clean the plate very often. I guess it's a benefit of officiating older players. I do clean the plate after F2 trows down to 2nd base at the top of the inning. After that, I try to wait for normal stoppages in the game.

1. Between batters with no one on (if needed).

2. After a foul ball (time is already out so why not).

3. Coach wants to talk to F1, I clean the plate slowly. By the time I am done, the coach better be too.

After a play at the plate, I wait until there is no further action then I call TIME. I don't care if I am alone or working a 6 man crew, I don't want anything going on behind my back.

Last of all, under no circumstances do I clean the plate if F1 has 2 strikes on the batter. It interrupts the timing of both F1 and the batter (I hate when small diamond umpires do this). It will take an act of God for me to clean the plate at this time! Only if the coach wants to talk to F1 would I dream of stopping action at this time.

[Tim C]

A couple of things:

IF I am going to use my brush, with my back turned, I always call time.

IF I am simply going to use my foot wedge I don't BUT I face the field (also I am not the great plate cleaner -- I dust only the inside and outside corners during an inning -- the whole plate at the start of an inning, if necessary).

Other times:

As a PU if a batter rasies his hand to me like the "wait a second while I get ready" crap the first few times I make a big "TIME" call and get out from behind F2 -- then I tell them "hey meat, the catcher and I will make sure you're ready before he pitches no need to call time!"

If a pitcher wants a different ball and there are runners on base I ALWAYS call "TIME" before making the change.

On the bases I never allow a fielder to call time for no reason. I often ask: "WHY do you want time?" but don't call it.

I cannot think of any "little" issue where my eyes leave the field (well except for searching for MILFs) that would cause me to call "time."

Regards,

[TussAgee11]

I am a fan of using the presumed time out if anythign happens. My partner will always be on board with me, because I show him the brush before I lean over. If he doesn't see it, or has his back turned to me, I'll yell out Time. But no need to if my partner and I can be on the same page without having to yell it out.

Just a matter of style, although I'm pretty sure most want time to be called someway or another.

[RPatrino]

I agree with Tee.

If you turn your back, you call time, period...end of story. When the plate gets dirty because of a sliding runner, call time and clean it. Other than that, you don't have to brush it off except between innings.

One of my biggest pet peeves is people who grant time out everytime a runner slides into a base. They are laying there and the fielder is hovering over him waiting for him to get up. Give me a break!!! I tell the fielder to 'throw the ball to the pitcher and lets play'.

I had an EJ one time (player and 3rd base coach), R2 steals 3b, raises his hand and prior to my 'granting' time out he leaves the base to dust himself off. F5 applies the tag... I have an out!!! Player turns into the Tasmanian Devil and I give him the rest of the game off. 3B coach "F" bombs me and he's heading for his Toyota. HC comes trotting out to see "what the Heck is going on here?" I asked him if he saw the play? He said..."Yes, but I thought you always give a time out in those cases?" My answer, "I don't".

PS. I follow the "5 word" rule when talking to coaches.

[Chris_Hickman]

i guess it depends on my mood...haha If all "play" is over, I usually do not call time. With R3........Most of the time I do. I have a pretty good feel as to what is going on out on the field. I think its a preference thing. You can take your shots if you want......

[SanDiegoSteve]

Originally Posted by Chris_Hickman

i guess it depends on my mood...haha If all "play" is over, I usually do not call time. With R3........Most of the time I do. I have a pretty good feel as to what is going on out on the field. I think its a preference thing. You can take your shots if you want......

Pretty similar for me. If R3, I call Time to clean the plate. If I am working with one or more partners, I DO NOT call Time with R1 and/or R2. That is what base umpires are for, to watch the action at the other bases. When working solo, I always call Time to clean the plate with any runners on base, because I do not have eyes in the back of my head.

Like Tim, if I just use the foot wedge to knock a bit of dirt from the corners, I don't call Time, but keep my eyes forward. I also don't grant Time to infielders for no reason, and also ask them what they need Time for, which usually they can't give an answer.

[BigTex]

Originally Posted by tibear

Quickly:
1) Call Time out.
2) Clean plate, Clean Glasses or whatever.
3) Call Time in with a "Let's Go" or something to indicate you want them to go quickly.

Should take no more then 5 seconds.

By rule, you cannot call "time in" until the pitcher has taken his place on the rubber and the batter is ready in the box. Whenever you call "TIME," you should have "TIME" for more than 5 seconds. If you give an informal "time in" and then the pitcher (who may be standing behind the mound) fires to first, and someone calls an out.....stand-by for a sh!thouse.

[GarthB]

Originally Posted by tibear

I think its best to call time and then there is no problem.

Quickly:
1) Call Time out.
2) Clean plate, Clean Glasses or whatever.
3) Call Time in with a "Let's Go" or something to indicate you want them to go quickly.

Should take no more then 5 seconds.

1. Umpires don't call "time in", they put the ball in play.
2. Putting the ball in play requires that the pitcher has the ball and is on the rubber, the batter, catcher and umpire are ready.
3. Don't ever clean your glasses during an inning.
4. 5 seconds? The umpire would like a Monty Python sketch.