The Smitty Chronicles
 

Loved Tuss' Smitty thread. It made me think of incompetent or over-the-hill officials I have known.

The ones who pi$$ me off most are the shopworn vets who love to dispense advice.

There was a guy in my area who was the best ump around--all you had to do was ask him. He came to spectate at a HS game I was doing and chastised me between innings for wearing a watch. I didn't take it off. After the game he asked me how I dare defy him. I calmly said, "Well, sport, if I take your advice and really follow it, I'll end up being just as mediocre as you are."

I knew a similar guy who did hoops. I was on his board. Once I watched him do a key state game where he totally botched a player DQ. At the next meeting, the same ref went into a longish screed about fouling-out procedure, citing his own botched work (but not referring to himself). I knew I was leaving the board soon, so I stood up and asked, "Hey Frank--who worked that game?" He sat down, speechless, and the room cracked up.

I worked on that same board with a sharp, young ref who couldn't BUY a varsity game. So he quit, went to a camp and was doing D-2 college a couple of years later. I watched him do a game in my area and one of the board honchos came up to me and said, "Hey Ace, isn't that Harry Refname out there?" After I assented, he said, "But he's a jayvee official!"

I said, "Not anymore."



Ace

I'm curious as to why you'd feel the need to wear a watch during a game. They guy could have been a total douche bag for the most part, but he was right on this point.


Tim.

In Ace's defense, Tom, I have to say his response wasn't all that uncalled for given what the guy said to him.



That's an invite for a terse response.


Tim.

I do not think it is fair for us to refer to poor umpires as "smitty", because it reflects negatively on coaches and implies that most coaches are not up to the task.

So a guy makes a mistake, owns up to it and you feel the need to embarass him. And then only because you were leaving the board
In my neck of the woods we call that "coward"

Please explain. Maybe it's a language thing between Canadian English and idioms and American English and idioms.

ahhh heck its Friday, I'll play

How does the word 'Smitty' refer to coaches? Too much Labatt's last night, eh, cd? ;)

The guy was not owning up to his mistake. He was telling everybody how to deal with DQs and cited his own game mess up without saying it was his game and he botched it.

If an official can't deal with being a bit thrown off in an association meeting, how in the heck is he going to listen to a coach in his ear for 4 quarters?

I have no idea what you're saying, but I'll try to respond.

You can be a poor umpire and not a smitty. Its really not hard, take advice, wear a proper uniform, and have an inquiry as the rules of the game and the mechanics.

You could miss every call in a given game and not be a smitty. Just a bad umpire.

CD, here in the US, a Smitty will wear his hat backwards at the plate, wear his shin guards on the outside of his pants, and have a ball bag full of seeds. On the bases, he will brush off the pitcher's plate, brush off the bases, and flash the count back to the PU. As Tuss stated, it is not the bad umpire that is the Smitty. And Smitty has no references to coaches, it is strictly pointed to umpires.

They'll also come to games and offer "sage wisdom" to you through the backstop between innings, such gems as "Did you know the tie really doesn't go to the runner?"

I smiled, nodded and reminded him the bat also had no hands and that you could overrun first base and turn towards second. He got confused on that last one. :D

[quote=TussAgee11]The guy was not owning up to his mistake. He was telling everybody how to deal with DQs and cited his own game mess up without saying it was his game and he botched it.

If an official can't deal with being a bit thrown off in an association meeting, how in the heck is he going to listen to a coach in his ear for 4 quarters?[/quote]

Tuss,
There something to be said for that.

But, I hafta judge intent. If the intent is to flame and humiliate, then making such statements is rude, impolite, disrespectful and ill-mannered.

Why do I doubt that "smitty" used the word "defy" in his query?

I always thought a "Smitty" referred to a coach, and that umpires used it as a synonym for "rats". Now it seems it is a term used solely to describe umpires with a bad attitude.