Where can I sign up to work the plate in an armchair? :)

Of course I adapt to changes in mechanics and rules. When I worked using OBR I did how they wanted. When I worked NCAA I did it how NCAA supervisors wanted.

My point is that applying MLB mechanics to NCAA and NF is not good unless the rules agree. MLB umpires have far better field awareness than most of the umpires posting on this forum. When HS and youth umpires that have not developed the same keen field awareness they more often than not will get themselves into trouble trying to emulate.

you'll need one of these...

http://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=...&ct=image&cd=3

I am content to stay in the present.:)

I have enjoyed this intellectual exercise.

When I began umpiring I was very fortunate to be taught by AAA umpires in my association. Our entire association worked professional mechanics with a few modifications the state/Fed. wanted.
It's not the "trying to emulate" that brings trouble, it's the inexperience of not knowing what you're looking at which brings problems; solved by experience.

And really, through all this hand-wringing about calling time or not, how many times during a game is this necessary? Once, twice? More time is wasted during the game by the kids not hustling to/from their positions.

Yeesh... After reading all these, the impression I get, is the umpires who handle their games like "Big Dawgs", take care of the small things, know when and when not to do something, take charge, are the ones not calling time. Yes, a matter of preference. Not that big of deal. But its one small bullet in the big gun, that overall, seperates the top guys, from everyone else.
Do it at the right time, play over, runner dusting himself off, F1 walking around the mound, new batter stepping in, make quick eye contact with my partner as I spin to dust, 2-3 seconds later, Im back up, behind the catcher.
Call it, dont call it. Yeah, again just one small piece of the big puzzle that happens during a game. But add them all up, its running your game that much better.

I still cannot fathom the reasoning for a PU to turn his back to the diamond to clean home plate and allow the ball to remain live while there are runners on base. It is just not good game management.

MTD, Sr.

and i still cannot fathom the reason for a PU to call time to clean the plate simply because there are runners on base. it is just not good game management.

bobby:

Everyone of who has ever umpired baseball games using NFHS rules has on more than one occasion has had to umpire a baseball game by himself. Are you going to let the ball reamain live while you turn your tuchus to the diamond while you clean the plate with runners on base?

Furthermore, when you do have a partner and there are runners on base, why would you take yourself "out-of-the-game" by turning your tuchus to the diamond to clean the plate and allow your partner to worry about a third world play. As I have stated in earlier posts, I just hope you don't have a partner who tells F1 to ahead and drill you in the tuchus because the ball is live and the batter is in the batter's box while you are cleaning the plate.

MTD, Sr.


P.S. Years ago I was the BU for a H.S. jr. varsity game (NFHS Rules) and my partner cleaned home plate six times in the top half of the first inning even though the visitor's had only one base runner and he only reached second base. As soon as the top half of the inning was over, I went to him that the next time he cleaned home plate when it didn't needed to be cleaned I was going to have F1 drill him in his tuchus. He got the picture.

first, i don't work in fedlandia.

second, if my partner is worth his weight in wooden nickels he can handle any third world play that develops on the bases. that's why they call him a base umpire. a play developing at the plate is irrelevant because i don't clean the plate when plays are developing at the plate; that just wouldn't make any sense. and don't give me that crap about a runner taking off from third when i turn my back, cuz i'd be done cleaning before he had taken 3 steps...and it's a lot more than three steps from 3rd to home.

third, i put a disclaimer in for one man games a looooooong time ago in an earlier post.

fourth, if i had a partner that did that i would likely never umpire again because i would be banned for kicking the $hit out of him on the field.

finally, if you were working with me and approached me with that kind of attitude you would be working by yourself the rest of the way, and i would stay behind the backstop and loudly criticize every wrong move you made until you got the picture.

have a nice day.

I think both sides of the discussion have been fully explored.

If you call time, you *might* be doing something "smitty-ish."

If you don't call time, you *might* be risking a play.

Pick your poison.