I call hokey-pork! That may well be the perception but in all reality the difference is criminal....in the district around here if you are paid in cash( or check) you cannot work above quarterfinals.

BUT......if you were paid in gift-cards or script to the store of your choice...World Series Here I Come.....I am also volunteer of the decade and all around great guy....have you seen my new kayak LL gave me?

And for the record I don't do LL....I just call HOKEY_PORK!



And Steve this is not a rant about you or your LL. If you say it is so I say good for you.

griff

What, uh, are you talking about? I don't have a LL. Perhaps you have me confused with a member of LL baseball. I do know that there are more LL's here that use paid umpires than those who use volunteers during the regular season. I have never worked a game for free, other than a pre HS season scrimmage or two per year.

About District/Regional and above
 

It's like what SDS sez but with a twist: If you have been calling games for years and have had training [and I guess if you're not a complete moron], you are encouraged to 'report' on your resume that you are a volunteer Umpire if you want to be considered for a Regional or LLWS game.

I get paid for calling games by this local League. Does not compare to HS but I can pay for all my gear, uniforms and some gas.

I've never done a Regional [& above] but I think I'd like to before I 'leave'. I just won't bring myself to lie on the resume.

Maybe my last year I'll not accept payment.


Anyway, thanks for the input!:)

Good for you. I've received a PM that implies that's exactly what well over half of this year's LLWS umpires did. That's both disheartening and counterproductive.

You mean to tell me that someone paid some of those guys ? Some of the ones that I saw should refund their park's money.

Leave it, don't look back. Go on to HS ball where you will sometimes have some good games to call, and nobody will consider you a volunteer.

Steve..I guess I do have you confused with someone else. Sorry.

1. I echo Bob read the FED rule book as if were the first time. Also, AT FIRST do not try and compare the different rule codes. Forget about OBR / LL when reading the FED rule / Case Book.

2. After reading the book, see if you can get some past years tests from some HS umpires (hopefully the answers are not already on them).

3. Purchase the BRD (Baseball Rule differences)

4. Learn the mechanics that are practiced in your HS association. Sometimes one develops bad habits when working LL games.

Why! Because in LL you might be "covering' for bad partners. Many Times at least from my experience in LL you have the dish and you have a parent / coach / Jr. Blue who is on the bases.

Suggestion: I am not telling you to give up volunteering Umpiring LL games, but I would stay away from doing the dish in the minors / majors because you will develop bad habits. The LL Strike zone is not the same as the HS strike zone with the exception of some low modified / JV games.

5. Leave LL ism's behind. What do I mean by that

A. Some LL organizations etc. want the umpires to "hang around" after games etc. In HS we do not do this. When the game is OVER it's OVER. Give whatever baseballs you have left to the Home coach and head for your car.

B. When EVERYONE knows the ball is FOUL do not go screaming FOUL at the top of your lungs.

C. The coach can warm -up F1. Also, if a player is not Squatting down they do not need a helmet and mask to warm up F1 - That's why it's extremely important to heed the advice of Bob and read the FED rule book as if it were the first time and also forget about the "other' rule codes.

There are many many differences between FED and LL which include both safety and playing rules.

Pete Booth

I know two gentlemen who have umpired in the Little League World Series and when I work with them in our district year after year, that they get paid after each game in cash.

I have been paid for doing district and sectional games in the LL tournament.

I believe that if being a "volunteer" is a requirement to umpire at the LLWS, then some people are not being entirely truthful.

Uic
 

As assignor/UIC, I can emphathise the plight of Regional/LLWS assignors: They need qualified people to call games. It's LL Inc. that creates this situation by mandating 'Volunteer Umpires Only'. What hypocracy!

They too look the other way when assigning games. They know who is in these games and that fact that they have, at some time in their 'officiating vocation' been remunerated.

Hah!, I hijacked my own thread!:D

Pete,

I see a whole lot more bad HS umpires in my neck of the woods than bad LL umpires.

I worked a LL Regional this year. I worked a high school sectional and a college conference tournament (NCAA D3), too. I wish umpires would stop painting "Little League Umpires" with such a broad brush. Would you like me to paint you with such a broad brush?

--Rich

Be Afraid...Be Very Afraid !
 

I started my career as a LL umpire.

The first thing that is going to hit you like a ton of bricks is the fact that ANYTHING GOES, and you are the target. There are no rules of conduct for coaches, or fans. You are going to get abuse you never new existed.

Every call is going to be scrutinized, ridiculed, and argued.

There will be no League Commissioner (or AD) to handle the crazy situations. Even when working with a partner, you will be alone at times.

Rules will come into play for situations that only happen once in a career, so read this forum every day, so you will be prepared.

Your timing, judgment, rules knowledge, and game management will be pushed to the limits of human ability.

You will have partners that will sell you out to save their own butt.

If you can make it through the first season, you will be on your way to being a better umpire than you dreamed possible. You will enjoy umpiring more than ever before, and you will spend the off season counting the minutes for the next season to start. You will also wonder why you ever did this for free (then when you get older, you'll remember, and return to volunteering your time for the kids).

Advise...

As already stated, read the FED rule book front to back, back to front. Then start in the middle, and work your way out.

Pick and choose who you listen to (other umpires) very carefully. The more arrogant, and indignant they are, the less you should listen.

If you blow a judgment call, stick with it, during your first year. Don't get into the habit of changing calls.

Try to objectively judge how you did after each game, and try to fix one, and only one, thing the next game.

Be confident, but not arrogant.

Dress properly, and keep your uniforms and equipment in tip top shape.

Purchase the Umpire Instructional Aids at www.reegind.com

Oh yeah...Don't forget to loose the mask, and use a Helmet. (sorry guys, just couldn't resist.)

I agree that the mask should be loose

*snicker*

Wow! Where do you work games? No wonder you've had to rely on a helmet.