Covering base with dirt

[SanDiegoSteve]

Originally Posted by MrUmpire

I have never seen a pro umpire clean a base.

That's because they never get covered with dirt. If they did, they would call the grounds crew out to clean it. And the grounds crew changes the bases midway through every game, so they always are fresh and white. Plus, they don't play in sandboxes where the dirt piles up to start with. They play on manicured infield dirt that doesn't gather all over the bases. And I have seen MLB umpires kick dirt from in front of second base after a runner has slid in. Those guys want that edge of the base clean. Nobody wants to see the runner slide into a pile of dirt and not be touching the base.