Federation ambiguity w/ "Distraction"
 

I've had problems with this part of the rule for a long time, esp when referring to the pitcher. Why don't they simply make the rule something that removes the "if deemed to be a distraction." I've found myself saving everybody the headaches and simply telling F2 to go out and tell his pitcher to x,y,z because the other team will say something anyway. When really what I'd like to tell the offense is to get up there and hit the ball as opposed to whining that part of the pitcher's batting glove is sticking out of his pocket.

To those of you who work FED ball, have you ever told a coach..."no, I don't think it's distracting, you'll have to deal with it."

http://www.nfhs.org/web/2009/02/2009...s_interpr.aspx

Specifically the first few dealing with the "white" I can understand the rule portion of the white not extending below the elbow...but I just dislike administering the "distraction" portions of the rule.

Your thoughts and advice:

I think a simple "Skip, in my judgment it is not distracting" will suffice.

Easier said than actually done on the field, don't you think? I guess my point is why fight the battle? I'm not disagreeing with you...after all, I asked for the advice...but from a game management standpoint, if you know coach is going to come out anyway...you now are calling time, going to talk to coach, then telling him that "it's not distracting when he says it is" now, in his player's minds...they're convinced that they're all distracted so he tells his on deck hitter to ask the umpire to x,y,z because he's distracted.

I guess I just don't think it's that easy. Esp here in MN where coaches are rating you as part of the State tournament selection process.

One difference is that if you enforce it without being asked, you're an OOO in the eyes of the other coaches; whereas, when you enforce it at the the request of a coach, the coach takes the heat from his brethern.

That said, I tend to agree Welpe and decline the invitation to be part of the complaining coach's game strategy as much as possible.

That's an interesting take. Is keeping the game moving on something inevitable considered OOO? I guess I don't really care what the coaches think of each other when if the shoe was on the other foot, they'd probably do the exact same thing?

That's not what I meant to suggest. Sorry if I wasn't clear. In this area, taking it upon one's self to enforce BS trivial "distractions" is considered OOO by many in both the umpiring and coaching ends of the business.

Fair points...I certainly agree...I guess in my area I have learned that I can't be too proud to simplly prevent the ticky-tack issue of even coming up because I don't want to get into pi$$ing contest w/ a coach over what is or isn't considered distracting

It does not get much more complicated than that. ;)

Peace

I guess I fail to see where the pi$$ing match comes in. Coach comes out, states that a batting glove in the pitcher's back pocket is distracting, I tell him "Not in my judgment." The conversation is over at this point and I am going back to my position. No further discussion is necessary and we're going to play ball. If he wants to be petty about it and belabor the point, he can go sit down or enjoy an early shower.

A smart coach will get the message and if he wants to pick a fight over something trivial such as this, he probably isn't a very good coach anyways.

Now if you have a pitcher doing an Al Jolson impression with eyeblack or something equally as ridiculous...that is a different story and deserves to be addressed.

I guess I can certainly give it a try. How do you get around the "power trip" rebuttle? In an effort to not sound like I'm trying to argue, I'm trying to think through the things that they'll say to me when I say...'it's not a distraction, let's play ball' I have no problem being assertive about things, but some battles are worth fighting, some aren't. I guess I'll find out this spring if it was worth it or not.

Because there's no possible way to list all the items / color combinations / locations that might be distracting.

Sometimes you just need to umpire.

I have said this before and I will say this again. If you have a certain presence on the field, you will not have to worry about many pissing matches in the first place. If you are constantly having coaches challenge your positions, it might be how you are being precieved and that has a lot to do with how many times you have to eject coaches in many cases.

Peace

I completely agree.

Isn't this the truth.....
 

An observation of mine over the years is that the teams that aren't very good (read: suck) usually have coaches that aren't very good (read: suck).

They have a way of blaming all the poor play and coaching by their players and themselves on the umpires. Sometimes I let myself get caught up in all the sorry, poorly played and coached baseball and let my game drop to their level. I hate it when that happens.

Examples like Welpe's and others' are usually what these guys resort to-asking us to call stupid stuff and whining about calls.

Makes for a very long day/night indeed..... Make 'em ask and then, if and only if, you deem their complaint has merit and action is warranted make the correction or make the call. Don't be afraid to tell them to get their butt back in the dugout. I hope some of these sorry coaches scratch me. I hate poorly played baseball with whining coaches.

I wouldn't say constantly by any means, not even seldom...but the crappy coach's rating is worth just as much as the great coach who "gets" how the game is played. I haven't had to eject, nor do I think this would ever escalate to a situation where a coach would eject himself, he'll just take it out on me in my rating and in MN, where rating does matter whether I like it or not, I feel like I need to consider that in how I approach things.

Bob J. I understand that they can never make a rule for every color combination but the rules specifically deal with "white issues"...my argument would be that if those who argue the ticky-tack would worry more about hitting than the hint of white somewhere, they'd be better off, but you can't get in that discussion on the field.

Thanks for offering your thoughts on this...keep 'em coming

I stopped worrying about ratings years ago. It is not something I can control in any way. You either like me or you do not like me. All I can do is look good in my uniform, hustle to every spot on the field I need to, get in good position to make calls, have good timing and have good knowledge of the rules. After that it is not my job to be liked by coaches and I do not care if any of them like me. But with all those things I just mentioned, I do not have many coaches challenge me and my ratings (especially in baseball) have been some of the highest I have had than any of my other sports and I have achieved the highest level in that sport and I was not trying to do so. I think a lot of this is because of how I carry myself and what I expect from coaches and players the minute I step onto the field. And often that is not even saying a single word. And an issue like this is so minor and insignificant, if you cannot tell a coach in a way that follows the rule and your judgment, and then you will have more problems than it is worth. I have never had a problem with this rule because I stop things from escalating and if I feel a rule is not violated, I tell the coach that fact in a calm and professional way.

Peace

They're part of the process here, too. Stop letting it affect how you umpire, it isn't worth the aggravation.

points well taken fellas. the candid, constructive posts are appreciated. thanks!

I don't think it is OOO to tell the catcher while dusting off the plate to go out and tell his pitcher to tuck the batting gloves in and thus head off the pending complaint. And I don't think it is fair to the offense to tell the coach it's not distracting when they clearly think it is.

I've been pretty much line Rut in that if the coach comes to me complaining, I am going to give it a good look and tell him that I do not find it distracting.

However, if the coach comes to me (as SMART coaches have) stating that their batter finds it distracting, the distraction will disappear very quickly!

right...so do you play word games with the coach or do you do as DG said and just take care of it if there's any doubt in your mind that they're going to say something

Not on Mr Blackwell's Worst Dress List?
 

Most pitchers remove their batting glove(s) before crossing the foul line. I would consider telling F1 to straighten up and look pretty. I doubt I would say anything to any other fielder.

Would you say something if F1's zipper was down, a shirt tail was out, shoe untied, white longsleeves on warm day, etc.? I'd want them to say something to me if my uniform was not in proper order.

Preventive officiating, Preventive officiating.

If you think that it has the potential of causing a problem, take the action ahead of time. Many times I have asked a pitcher to remove a questionable distraction so as not to cause a problem latter and almost always they reply, "oh sorry about, I understand."

I don't have to have discussions with any of the coaches after that either.

be tactful and solve the problems before they arise.

2 More Uniform Questions
 

A cold front is passing through the area. Temps fall into the low 40's and light mist is falling.

Would you allow varsity HS players to wear baseball jackets over their uniform shirt during play in the field? Would you use that as an indication to stop the game due to inclement weather?

Unsafe field or playing conditions an/or dangerous weather would be my justification for stopping the game.

As far as the temperature change and mist, I would have to use common sense and judge by the conditions at the time. Take that as a maybe, I would have to be there.

I once officiated a night varsity game that started at 7:00pm with possible showers. (50 deg). By the 5th inning it was misting and 37. Field remained in playing condition. Players were allowed to be comfortable in a manner that was safe to the game and in no way advantageous to their team.

Sometimes common sense has to prevail.

You also have to remember--it's one game. If a coach lowballs you on a rating because of a conflict you had with him, it's a) going to stick out when the opposing coach submits his ratings, b) going to stick out in comparison with your other ratings, and c) not going to affect your overall rating much.

If any of those three things are not true, then your rating for that game from that coach is not your biggest problem. I got rated a 3 from one coach last year--it was quite obvious that low of a score was an anomaly and didn't affect my overall score by more than a tenth of a point. Also, the guys at state know who rated you what, and while I can't say this with 100% certainty, I think that they hold certain coaches' ratings in much higher regard than others.

The one thing I would like to see in MN is the overall ratings of those eventually selected--not by name, but just as a gauge for each individual umpire to see where he compared to the state crews. I really want to know if the grading system actually reflects reality, and that it's not a right-skewed distribution, as I suspect.

Exactly.

So, a regular April day here...

I am allowing no less misery on the part of the participants than what I am experiencing at that time.

I would also like to see the ratings of the state tournament crews. Like you said, I don't need to see names, just the ratings...it would be a nice gauge...or a crappy gauge based upon what we would see...

this is not playing "word games" with the coach. I do not care if the coach finds anything distracting. He is in the dugout or the coach's box. HE is not playing the game. However, if he tells me that his batter has a problem with the golf glove or if the batter himself tells me he has a problem with it, the golf glove is gone! Why? Because coaches always have a problem with things. You have to know where to draw the line between a "b-i-t-c-h" or a valid complaint!

but you said it yourself, it's not what they say, but how they say it...any coach with even a brain my size will know to say that "my player is distracted" if he has an issue with something...so like I said, rather than even make it an issue I will prevent the discussion through proactive officiating. All you're doing by doing it your way is baiting the coach to come out again and say..."how can you allow them to do something that's distracting to my players?" We've all dealt w/ these "rats"...why fight the battle.

Isn't there a case play on this? Only F1 is allowed to wear a jacket, and only when he's base running.

I'm not even sure allowing the pitcher to wear a jacket is covered in rules or case book, but it is traditional, and no one has ever complained about a pitcher getting a jacket on the bases. I would not allow non-pitchers to wear jackets on bases and no fielders on defense.

1.4.4a

Thanks. It has never come up in any games I have worked or seen.