What would you call this guy?

[canadaump6]

[QUOTE=waltjp]
I sat and watched from the car as both teams went through fielding practice and you could see the coaches starting to look around for the umpires. It's about 3:45 and I'm starting to worry about my partner's whereabouts.

[QUOTE]

This is the thing that drives me crazy the most; partners who don't show up on time! Half the umpires in my organization come rushing to the ballpark 7 minutes or less before first pitch. So what the h*** am I supposed to do for the 20 minutes I am there before my partner gets there? Mingle with the fans in uniform? Hang out with the coaches? Or just stand beyond the outfield fence so that everyone can get a good look at me and wonder what I am doing before the game begins? It would make things a lot easier if my partner would be there; then we could discuss positioning and whatnot before the game begins. Grrr.

[waltjp]

Originally Posted by canadaump6

This is the thing that drives me crazy the most; partners who don't show up on time! Half the umpires in my organization come rushing to the ballpark 7 minutes or less before first pitch. So what the h*** am I supposed to do for the 20 minutes I am there before my partner gets there? Mingle with the fans in uniform? Hang out with the coaches? Or just stand beyond the outfield fence so that everyone can get a good look at me and wonder what I am doing before the game begins? It would make things a lot easier if my partner would be there; then we could discuss positioning and whatnot before the game begins. Grrr.

Sadly, I think we've all worked with guys like this. Granted, we're all late at some point but it's far the exception to the rule with me. I'm also aware that 4:00 PM starts are sometimes a problem, especially in an area as congested as North Jersey where a 10 mile drive can easily mean an hour's drive. What really irked me about this guy was his comment when he got out of his car and asked me about my "big f*cking strike zone". I had never worked with this guy before and haven't since but as the words are coming out of his mouth I'm thinking to myself that MY strike zone wouldn't be a concern if he was on time and working the plate as he was assigned.

[canadaump6]

Yeah this guy you worked with sounds like a complete joke. I've had to work with people like that before as well. I'm amazed that he actually thought he deserved to do varsity level games.