Admitting to your mistakes?
 

We all know it happens from time to time. But how often do you all own up to the mistake to coaches?

Last night during a varsity double header, my partner wasn't necessarily the best partner to have. He blew a couple of calls (out in the field the first game) and, granted, I knew the call was wrong but until he directly asks me for help, I am not going to interject in his decision making. In between half innings, the coach came and asked me if I agreed with the call and of course I did. I am not going to throw the man under the bus.

The second game I was out in the field and missed a balk (the pitcher failed to come to a distinct set position). Not that this is an excuse, but I swear that kid threw as many pitch off throws to first as he did pitches to the plate that inning (and it wasn't a short inning). I missed it and knew it I missed it. The 1st base coach came rolling over to me between innings and politely asked, "Is he coming set on all those pitches?" Without any thought I replied, "I missed one coach but all the other ones were legal. I'll be sure to continue to keep an eye on it." He said, "Ok. Thanks"

I can't say I've ever admitted to a coach directly that I missed a call as I did last night. Do you all think that it ruin my creditability with this coach? Of course, I'm not going to make it a habit to admit my mistakes but I just wasn't thinking when he approached me. In my eyes, if an umpire said that to me, I would be at ease with the situation because he obviously is paying attention to the game and will make sure to be on top of that call in the future.

-Josh

If the coach is being reasonable, I wouldn't have a problem with quietly admitting to him that I missed a call. If a coach comes up to me and asks about my partner's call, I am going to tell him to talk to the umpire who made the call.

[QUOTE]You have to be careful when you admit a mistake to a coach and it doesn't come back and "bite" you


Example: you know you missed a balk call. The OM requests time (before the next pitch IW etc.) and says "Blue he did not come set" to which you reply "skip I missed it"

The OM now says Blue please enforce. Now if you do not enforce the Balk the manager will then protest and in his report will indicate that you indeed said "You missed it" I have seen it happen.

Try to answer in generic terms. Using your example: you could simply have said "skip will keep an eye out for it" without admitting that you "missed it"

Pete Booth

[QUOTE=PeteBooth]Typically I take the approach of "I will keep an eye on it" but he caught me a little at ease. I think I was surprised more than he was that I said that.

-Josh

Honesty will earn you more respect than trying BS your way through it.

"Coach, I missed it. I'll work harder not to miss another." The end.

Coaches (some, anyway) understand you're human. They just want confirmation you're not an idiot too.

[QUOTE=PeteBooth]Nonsense. Complete and utter nonsense.

I'm not going to admit such a thing during the inning and I'm not going to stop play to discuss a balk (or non-balk) call.

Between innings, I'll be happy to tell him I kicked one. Big deal - not like it happens often.

Why do officials worry so much about protests? I've had 2 in 20 years and both were protests I recorded that I *knew* would get thrown out immediately.

Here is a complete list of all the mistakes (and the situation in which the mistake occurred) that I've admitted to coaches I made:

I have done this only on dead-red non-strike calls (accompanied by cranial fletus), discreetly, to coaches whom I knew not to be b@llbusters.

Besides, I got every other call right. For 31 years. Go figure.

ace in CT

In my view, there is only one way to answer the question the coach asked in the OP. That answer is "Yes, or I would have balked him". You can add, " and I'll keep watchin closely".

That coach, like all the other's, is just trying to get in your head to get his team a slight edge. Pure and simple. I am very likely to be very tuned in to how HIS pitcher is pitching for the rest of the game as well.

I thought I got a call wrong once...but I was mistaken.

Sounds good in theory, but probably not something that I would get in a habit of.

Certainly I've told a coach "I might have missed that call", but it's always going to be a coach that I've been around the block with many many times and he and i both know that "I might have missed the call".

But I've found its better to "play on" and keep the coach guessing as to what's going on in your head.

Thanks
David

About the only mistake I will admit to is a rules mistake or something along those lines. I will not admit judgments or plays I am in position to see clearly. Coaches for the most part are looking at the game through their prism. I do not put much stock in much they have to say about anything I am doing.

Peace

I put NO stock in anything a coach says about my job--brickbats or treacle. If one of them thinks that, say, F3 pulled his foot, I probably thought about before they did, and decided not to get help.

ace

I just don't hear that expression enough anymore. Thank the dog for Ace.

Admit nothing to a coach. Nothing. There is no benefit, and the downside can be substantial.

To every whine/request/petulance of a coach, a repeated "I'll keep an eye on it" will do nicely.

This 'earn their respect' by confessing errors is nuts. That only tells the coach that you are a soft touch who can be 'worked' for calls...and word gets around. The umpire coaches respect is the one that a) doesnt make mistakes, and b) if he did, he wouldn't go Oprah to a coach on the field.

If you work where you can enter confessional and the coaches don't use that as a weapon, then you aren't working competitive baseball. Aim higher.

Last year at a Division I college baseball game, I was sitting even with first base. With a runner on first and two out, there was a dropped third strike. As the batter ran down the first base line, the first base umpire (who has worked the College World Series on several occasions) exclaimed very loudly, "He's out! He's out!" Since there were two out even though first was occupied, that wasn't true. Right after the umpire exclaimed that, the catcher made the routine throw to 1B well ahead of the batter for the out.

As the defense ran off the field to change sides, the home plate umpire came down the line to talk to the 1st base ump. I overheard the 1B ump say, "That's right. There were two outs." The first base ump then looked over at the offensive dugout (which was on the first base side) and told the coaches, "There were two outs. I'm sorry. I made a mistake." Nothing further was said. That was the end of it.

That mistake had no consequence since the throw retired the batter (I would have been interested to have seen what they would have done had the throw gone into right field. Would the 1B ump's erroneous declaration have created a dead ball?).

However, according to what I quoted from you above, an umpire who has been to the College World Series on several occasions is not working competitive baseball.

I can see admitting to a mistake if there is an aggregious gaffe such as the one mentioned in the post above. The only way you are getting out of that pickle is by telling the coach, "Hey Coach, I kicked it." What else can you say in a situation like that?

If its judgement, I will never agree to admitting to a mistake on the field. I have only done so only once. I was in the press box following a tournament game where I kicked a rule where I apologized to the coach.

Very sparingly, only when rules are in question and you have a serious mental gaffe.

I made this same mistake once. Fortunately, it was in the last inning of a blowout (I screwed the team that was ahead), and no one cared. I will never make that call again. If you never call it, you will never F it up. The rats are supposed to know the rules anyway.

I work the highest level of baseball in my area (HS/D3) and I have told a coach I kicked one. Still can't figure how this could be used against me -- on the contrary, that's the cue to him to shut up since there's nothing more to say now.

Reputation goes a long way in this game. I can get away with lots of things that younger umpires will get eat up over simply because of the experiences that I've had with these coaches through the years.

I'm sure it was the same way with the umpire above who has the reputation, and nothing was said, keep playing etc.,

And I would be willing to bet that he doesn't miss a whole lot also...

Thanks
David

Admitting an obvious blown call to a coach who is out on you screaming in your face "how can you call that?" can be an option if used very sparingly. Definitely do not make a habit of copping out.

Hopefully, none of you kick calls on a daily basis, so getting a call wrong to begin with should be a rarity. You can difuse a ranting and raving coach by simply saying "I kicked that one Skip, I'll bear down next time."

As long as you don't make a practice out of doing this, a coach really has nothing left in his argument. It will exasperate him momentarily, but he will then accept the call and trot on back to his dugout/coach's box.