Definition of an Umpire
 

What exactly is the Definition of an umpire, and what exactly is their duties?

What I think:

Enforce the Rules as they need to be to keep a level playing field
Proper Conduct- fancy term for "behavior"

The umpire is the one who is responsible for the game; he is "in charge", and should A. Ensure no team is gaining an advantage; by enforcing rules and to B. Keep behavior issues under control and out of the game. Coaches, Managers, and Players should be dealt with accordingly when not acting appropriately. The umpire should be firm and do as necessary to keep the game going fairly.

Any one disagree; your thoughts?

My though is that this is another good reason for you to read a rulebook.

From the OBR:

9.01(a) The league president shall appoint one or more umpires to officiate at each league championship game. The umpires shall be responsible for the conduct of the game in accordance with these official rules and for maintaining discipline and order on the playing field during the game.


9.01(b) Each umpire is the representative of the league and of professional baseball, and is authorized and required to enforce all of these rules. Each umpire has authority to order a player, coach, manager or club officer or employee to do or refrain from doing anything which affects the administering of these rules, and to enforce the prescribed penalties.

9.01 1(c) Each umpire has authority to rule on any point not specifically
covered in these rules.


901(d) Each umpire has authority to disqualify any player, coach, manager
or substitute for objecting to decisions or for unsportsmanlike conduct or language, and to eject such disqualified person from the playing field. If an umpire disqualifies a player while a play is in progress, the disqualification shall not take effect until no further action is possible in that play.

9.01(e) Each umpire has authority at his discretion to eject from the playing field (1) any person whose duties permit his presence on the field, such as ground crew members, ushers, photographers, newsmen, broadcasting crew members, etc., and (2) any spectator or other person not authorized to be on the playing field.

Don't forget the most important trait of all. You must be a MASOCHIST.

Bob

This thread has no point. This topic contributes nothing to help other umpires, or, as Tee would put it, WOBW.

Excellent observation.

Now, then, combining the conflicting opinons from another WOBW thread by Rich, should young Dan have the right to delete it? The answer would then resolve a WOBW question in a WOBW thread using positions posted in different WOBW thread.

I don't understand THEIR point either;)

No, that there as, "Ah'm gonna go git that there rake and whoop up on the pahn needles in mah yard."

I like to break the umpire's responsibilities into 3 different categories:
1) Making judgement calls
2) Knowing and enforcing the rules
3) Maintaining the safety and sportsmanship of the game

What does this statement mean to you, Dan? What specifically constitutes "acting accordingly?" Your "definition" is mostly just a badly-written top-level summary.

Where's the beef?

Dave if you would understand English, re-read what you just quoted. I did not say "acting accordingly", I said "acting appropriately." And to add to that, they should be dealt with as such when needed.

Dan-
You are way too confrontational when it comes to dealing with the coaches and managers. The proof is in the pudding of your posts.

If you don't feel like I'm being too bold, what was your EJ/game ratio last season?

Good god, boy, are you on drugs?

My question to you is WHERE IS THE BEEF? What does "dealt with accordingly" mean, son? Give examples, be specific. That's the only way anyone here can help you.

My suspicion is that you think dealing "accordingly" with game participants who behave inappropriately means ejecting those participants. Your lack of willingness to listen and learn the finer points of game management, instead just throwing out general bromides about being in charge and dealing accordingly with inappropriate behavior, is probably what caused your assignor (as well as Andy Konyar, if I recall your story correctly) to suggest that you should take a year off from umpiring.

I know you're an adolescent, but you appear to remain more child than man at this point in your life, and umpiring at any serious level is an adult job. You need to gain some maturity, some significant improvement in your communicative skills, and a better balance between confidence, which is a good thing but you have more than you've earned, and humility, which is also a good thing and you have almost none.

All I'm sure of from this post is that there's no way in hell you'd ever work for me. Not if your on field attitude matches your posting attitude. You've come nowhere near the right to be "holier than thou", yet you continue to behave like a 12 year old with a chip on his shoulder.

Learn.

Then learn some more.

Then come back here and post.

My, my. Feeding the trolls doesn't ever seem to get old around here.


More's the pity.

Dan,

Tell me and please be truthful:

1. How do you feel when you walk on the field?

2. Do you feel 'powerful' and 'in charge'? Maybe a feeling that you've never had at home?

3. How does it make you feel when you eject a coach? A chance to boss around an adult?

4. What is your opinion of the coaches before a game? Are they out to show you up? Maybe they're going to cheat to win? Are they just another adult that has power over kids? What do you think?

5. When you 'kick' a call how does that make you feel? Maybe just part of the game and the coaches will just have to live with it?

6. How do you feel when you 'kick' a call and the coach comes out to talk to you about it because it cost him a run or was just so bad that everyone in the house saw it but you? Do you think here comes an adult to holler at me, I'll show him?

Tell me young Dan the Umpire Man, how does all of this power make you feel?

1. When I walk on the field, I feel I need to call a game properly and ensure everyones safety, and to get along with the coaches and managers.

2. No, I do not feel powerful or "in charge". I'm there to umpire, coaches and mangers are here to coach and manage, and players are here to play. I only use my "Powers" when duty calls.

3. No, when i eject a coach or manager, it is not because i am on a power trip, it is because they did something they are not supposed to. I don't do it just because "i can boss around an adult". When i go to the field, it is now umpire/coach/manager/player, not child/adult. We all need to do what we should be doing.

4. I think highly of coaches, and I respect them. It is not a personal feeling, its an volunteer to volunteer relationship. I try to get along with them.

5. When I know i kicked a call, I do feel bad about it, but I continue on and do the best i can as an umpire. If someone wishes to chew me out about it, fine. I'll listen to it, and do my best.

6. Again, this one goes hand in hand with some of the other ones here. Nothing on the field is to be personal. Adults and children; makes no difference. We are now coach/manager/umpire.

oh and who ever asked about my ej to game ratio, it is 3 EJS to appox. 40 games. with two being in the same game.

Okay, now think about this and honestly answer.

You worked a season of approx. 40 games, and have had to remove a participant in 2 of those games. I'm assuming (correct me if I'm wrong) that you worked 40 LL games.

Compare yourself to some of the more expierienced umpires here. I can't speak for all of them, but I can speak for myself. The last two seasons I've worked about 200-225 games. In those 200-225 games I've had 2 ejections. One was a manager who just would not stop arguing a close play at second base (summer college league), and the other was a HS coach who told me that he was sure I was trying to miss calls because I didn't want his team to win.

This is not to say that I haven't had arguements. I have. But the difference is knowing how to defuse a situation. It is difficult to learn, but you must be committed to attaining this skill. One way is to do your best to keep them in the game. I'm not telling you to stop ejecting when it's warrented, I'm telling you to carefully consider how you can be better at being a calming presence in an argument.

What do you think, can you make goals and work at attaining them?

I was doing to say something similar. It's been 3 years or about 250 games since I've ejected anyone, that was in a Babe Ruth game where the coach decided that he was going to follow me out on two consecutive calls and tell his runner to stay on the base because I was wrong, before that I went 200 games between ejections.

You learn to deal with confrontation and you learn how to deal with situations, it sounds like in Dan's case his association probably needs to schedule him with veteran umpires or mentors.

I don't want to speak for Dan, but....

I think one of the problems may be lack of quality mentor availability in his area. I was lucky enough to have two very good NCAA umpires take me under their wing when I started. They were honest with me about everything.

If they thought I sucked, they told me, "You sucked." If I did a good job, "You did good, kid. But keep working on ______, ______, and ______." They weren't big on telling me war stories, and when they did they remembered to let me know that until I've earned some respect, I couldn't and shouldn't talk to managers the way they did.

Just some things I've tried to present to new umpires.

3 EJS to appox. 40 games? Really Dan that's a pretty high ejection percentage rate. That's how many ejections I've had in the past 2 season and I work 130+ baseball games between Feb & Dec in leagues from youth to adult. You could also add in maybe 50 fast pitch softball games (no additional ejections). I will admit that my ejection rate increases when doing men's slowpitch softball....the beer leagues can be rough :D

Maybe if you were a better umpire you wouldn't upset so many coaches...think about it....attend some clinics and learn. I remember way back, about a life time ago for you, when I went to my first umpire school.....I didn't realize how much I $ucked as an umpire until I was taught by some guys that knew what they were doing. And after all these years I still attend at least one umpire clinic away and all of the local ones I can find and umpiring is only my hobby.

As with most things, it's not necessarily the quantity of ejections, but rather the quality.

I've had years in which I had one ejection in more than 150 games. I've also had years in which I've had five ejectons in one half-inning.

As long as one is appropriately taking care of business, ejections are not an issue. It is when one is inappropriately, or needlessly taking care of business, or when one ignores taking care of business that really needs taking care of that ejections, or lack thereof, ejections become issues.

There is a difference between a coach who knows where the line is and one who doesn't. The first is more likely to walk up to the line and not cross it, the second has not a clue so he doesn't even know when he crossed the line so toss him quick and get on with the game. If a coach who knows where the line is (and an experienced umpire will know who this is) crosses it's because he is either 1) doing it on purpose or 2) out of control.

My last ejection was a college pitcher, who after a call I made on the bases screamed at me "you are f*ck*ng kidding". Heck, I could have blown the call, although I don't think so, but he clearly did not know the line. When the manager came out to ask what happened I told him and he asked me how much time he had to warmup the next pitcher. I said "as much as he needs". The manager knew the line. He didn't say a word about the call.

Most sub-varsity coaches don't know where the line is.

I haven't tossed a head coach in years. For the most part they know what they can and can't get away with. Assistant coaches, on the other hand, at least locally, come and go and often either don't know the limits or haven't been around long enough to know me.

Wow! One of your best posts in a while IMO T!

I have been warned ahead of time, about trouble teams, and these games usually work out fine. Maybe they know me. When I'm not warned is when sh*t happens. Maybe they don't know me, or it's just me, I don't like when unexpected sh*t happens. But I am pretty sure I'm not an elephant hunter.

Tee- good point about the "elephant hunters."

To pile on that one, it's also dependent on what league you work. If you work a ton of over 30 games, sometimes you chuck those has-been cry babies left and right because they just b*tch and moan about how YOU cost them on that call since they could beat out that grounder in college. hah!!

Yup, I've been sent to games as an "elephant hunter" also. And same as DG, nothing ever happens (which is fine by me). I have a reputation of being a decent person but not taking any $hit. I simply let the game proceed to it's own finality. If I have to make a minor "adjustment" to get things back on course, no problem.

Newcomers, please be advised that Tim C., myself and many others that seem to have "trouble free" games are not officiating youngsters. We rarely drop below High School level and that makes a big difference in how the games proceed. I don't think that I would put up with the shenanigans of some of these youth coaches anymore.

I think mine is approximately 1 per year, working around 80-100 games a year. So while your ratio is a bit higher than that, with the small sample size, it's possibly not completely out of whack.

However ... the bigger problem to me with your statement is that you seem to think this is a low amount. It's not. It's average at best, possibly high.

And rest assured, I think I'd be giving counsel to someone who went 0 ejections in 2 years - it's almost a given that that umpire lets too much go. So the middle ground is where you want to be.

The reason I bagged on you earlier, however, is that despite THIS post, your previous posts (both the one that started this thread and the one about the letter you sent to your UIC, and others) give the general impression that you are on a power trip. Reference questions others have asked you - they have the same impression I do. You think that maybe since MOST of us seem to think you've got the wrong motivation for your efforts, that possibly we are right, and you need to chill a bit?

Try no ejections in 5 years of umpiring, equalling about 270 games in total.

What this tells me is that you've passed your problems on to others.

Just so a certain someone here won't continue to say I was just picking on him, here is the bottom line with this statement:

I sounds like you haven't been doing your job. When someone tells me that for 270 straight games, every single manager, coach, and player have been perfect little angels, and have never done one single thing to warrant an ejection, I call BULLSH!T!!! You are bound to have at least a couple of situations in which you should have tossed someone, because the nature of these rodents is to act like rodents.

It always sends up a red flag whenever I work with someone who brags about not running anybody. I know then that I'm most likely in for a long day at the ballyard.

I have had over 500 games over the past three years...I am young, and the coaches here have tried to intimidate me and push me around, which has lead to what would probably be considered a high EJ/Game ratio...but I dont think that makes me any better or worse of an official...I think that a good official is determined by consistency, professionalism, game control, and overall prescence and mechanics on the field...I dont think that any one factor should determine if someone is regarded as good or not...I know some very good umpires who have quite a few EJs a season, I also know some very good umpires who have next to none...

Might be the best post on this site I've seen since I started posting here.

Last year was the first year I ever went through a season without an EJ. It still surprises me (my nickname at umpire school after all was "Mr. Red A$$"). What was the reason? According to my own self-analysis:

(1) I'm more mellow (just the nature of growing older). I tend to employ the "let them talk for 10 seconds, before you respond" philosophy of handling "discussions" than I ever did in the past.

(2) I'm a veteran with multiple state championship assignments...which by its nature earns respect from coaches. (Frankly, the coaches propably even think, "even if we don't like him, we better get used to him because he's done x number of playoff games...). Being a veteran also means coaches no longer "test" me. (And they do "test" our new guys!)

(3) I have, on NUMEROUS occasions, had an on-field "discussion" over a rules interpretation with a coach in which the discussion ended with the coach convinced I was wrong. However, each time, the coach came up to me later in the game or after the game and said, "we looked it up in the rule book, and you were right." I've never had an argument with any of those coaches since. It is funny to me how many times this has happened to me.

(4) In my own self-evaluation of my work in 2006, I had my best balls-and-strikes year ever, period. (That's my own self-evaluation. I'm not comparing myself to anyone else. I'm not saying I'm God's gift to plate umpires. I'm just comparing myself in 2006 to myself in previous years).

(5) I'm very, very relaxed on the field (as opposed to prior years when I was more anxious/nervous). I have an attitude of, "don't worry. You've been doing this for so long now that you can handle anything that comes up." Being relaxed truly allows me to get more calls right...which leads to fewer "non-routine situations".

(6) I hustle. I've had several coaches say "we see you hustling," during the course of a game. They immediately have a level of respect for you.

(6) Luck. I had few third-world plays in 2006, and when I did have one, I was able to calm down the respective coach with a coherent rules explanation. They might not have left happy, but they left with an explanation they could grudgingly accept.

(7) Some more luck.

I agree with Garth and Steve. You've almost definitely simply let too much go by you, and some other umpire had to deal with too much later because of it. I suppose it's possible you simply work in the most gentlemanly league ever ... but no ejections in 5 years is quite surprising.

A big AMEN, law. I'm a younger guy and i needed a way to convey some respect when i did varsity games for the first time this year- i hustled my butt off; and you are right, i've gotten tons of compliments about my hustle which brought some respect along with my solid rules knowledge. These helped me get some playoff games when the post season rolled around.

Yep, I should have ejected a lot of people but didn't. Things are gonna change this year.

But don't go from one extreme to the other, and go around looking for trouble. Just make sure to handle your "bidness" when trouble comes your way.