Who Does the Plate?

[JJ]

If it's not assigned, how do you decide who does the plate - what if BOTH of you want it, and what if NEITHER of you want it?
Flip a coin? Senior umpire decides?
Is there a way to gracefully say "I don't want it tonight?" without the other guy thinking I'm just dodging the dish?

JJ

[johnnyg08]

If you ask the person what they prefer and he says, he doesn't care, and you really don't feel like it, then tell him that it would be great if he took the dish tonight, then promise to take the dish the next time you work together. Pretty simple to me.

[Tim C]

We are assigned either stick or bases. We do not have a choice and the decision is never left "up to us."

[Rich]

Originally Posted by Tim C

We are assigned either stick or bases. We do not have a choice and the decision is never left "up to us."

I wouldn't assume this is normal. You know how many places I've lived and the plate/base assignment has never been assigned in games I've worked.

[Toadman15241]

I've never been assigned one or the other. Normally if both want/don't want the dish for a game then the senior man gets to make the call the first time. After that it is customary for it to rotate back and forth.

IMO an association should never assign the dish unless it is a playoff game. If the two umpires can't decide in the dressing room then there are much bigger issues in the association than who is working the dish.

[MD Longhorn]

Originally Posted by Toadman15241

I've never been assigned one or the other. Normally if both want/don't want the dish for a game then the senior man gets to make the call the first time. After that it is customary for it to rotate back and forth.

IMO an association should never assign the dish unless it is a playoff game. If the two umpires can't decide in the dressing room then there are much bigger issues in the association than who is working the dish.

Really? So the assignor should have no say in this? There may be reasons for the assignor wanting a specific PU/BU - I can think of LOTS of reasons.

I can't remember the last time I was assigned a game where I didn't know where I was going beforehand.

[Toadman15241]

Originally Posted by mbcrowder

Really? So the assignor should have no say in this? There may be reasons for the assignor wanting a specific PU/BU - I can think of LOTS of reasons.

I can't remember the last time I was assigned a game where I didn't know where I was going beforehand.

There are only a couple reasons I can think of, the most common being evaluation or playoff games (as I mentioned in my first post). Want to assign for those? Fine.

With every other case one of the following two rules applies. 1) If the crew can't recognize that one should be on plate, the other on bases then you have a bigger issue than which one is working which. (I've mentioned the game where I was the BU for my own high school numerous times. If my partner and I couldn't figure out I should be on the bases then both of us should have been kicked out of the association.) 2) If you can't trust both your guys to do the dish as an assignor then you shouldn't have one of them working the game. End of story.

[lawump]

Originally Posted by Tim C

We are assigned either stick or bases. We do not have a choice and the decision is never left "up to us."

That's the way it is done in central SC in high school and American Legion. We even assign a crew chief for each game. That crew chief may or may not be the plate umpire. The crew chief is almost always the more/most experienced umpire.

[yawetag]

Here, we decide when we talk to each other the night before. Every time, I say "Do you want the plate or bases?" If he makes a decision, he gets what he chooses; if he says "It doesn't matter to me," I'll usually take the opposite of what I had the last game.

The only exception is if we've worked together. Before asking, I'll say "We worked together last year at ... and I (1) had the bases, I'll take the plate. (2) had the plate, so what would you like this time?"

Personally, I don't care what I do. I find, though, that most umpires will find excuses to not take the plate. It makes no sense to me.

[collint1993]

I normally want to do the plate and I am normally assigned to it. But every now and then we aren't assigned and there have been days when I just didn't feel it and me and the other guy flipped a coin. Normally you'll work with the same guy more than once.

[scarolinablue]

Originally Posted by lawump

That's the way it is done in central SC in high school and American Legion. We even assign a crew chief for each game. That crew chief may or may not be the plate umpire. The crew chief is almost always the more/most experienced umpire.

Same way in the Upstate of SC...

[umpjong]

Originally Posted by JJ

If it's not assigned, how do you decide who does the plate - what if BOTH of you want it, and what if NEITHER of you want it?
Flip a coin? Senior umpire decides?
Is there a way to gracefully say "I don't want it tonight?" without the other guy thinking I'm just dodging the dish?

JJ

You mean you actually own plate gear? I've been lied to for 25 years...

[jicecone]

Never worked in an area were the position was pre-assigned and I usually try to cover it in my phone call the night before. I prefer the dish but, always give the other official the option. A lot of times I ask just to see the response I get. For the most part it is assumed that you switch off game to game. There are those (and every association has them), that habitually have an excuse of why they can't do it though.

I especially like the ones that never return the phone call and show up at the last minute. At one time I used keep track of the times I did the dish and it was always way more than the times I didn't. Not complaining but sometimes I just wish some officials would just say, "hey, I never do the dish, I don't feel like it, I am afraid to sweat a little, I suck at it or I am just too lazy to put the gear on" instead of all ridiculous excuses I hear sometimes.

Once, I actually had a partner show up after the game had started in full gear and said "I always do the dish for these games". Of course he never returned a phone call the night before and was fifteen minutes late. I told him to go back to his car and take the equipment off and either go home or come back and do the bases. I could write a book on this topic. It was always more common for HS ball and below because usually the College Associations didn't allow these slackers do officiate in the first place.

[cbfoulds]

Originally Posted by JJ

If it's not assigned, how do you decide who does the plate - what if BOTH of you want it, and what if NEITHER of you want it?
Flip a coin? Senior umpire decides?
Is there a way to gracefully say "I don't want it tonight?" without the other guy thinking I'm just dodging the dish?

JJ

Around here it is always "assigned" plate or bases; it's a function in Arbiter. Except for playoffs and "purpose" assignments [evaluation or elephant hunting] the position assignments are subject to change at the choice of the crew.

-I had the dish with these guys last time, would you mind?
-I've done my last three on the plate [/or bases, but you almost never hear that]; would you mind?
-This will be my first live pitching this season [all scrimages rained out - happened to me this year] - would you mind if I took the dish for this [JV] game? I'd like you to give me some eval. post-game.

In the event of "conflict", the most senior/ highest rated [in my assn. such positions are relatively unofficial/ informal, but generally well-recognised] umpire makes the decision. Never had it happen [disagreement] in one of my games. Helps that we get paid the same plate or bases; and official policy is EVERYONE brings plate gear to ALL games.

[yawetag]

Originally Posted by cbfoulds

Except for playoffs and "purpose" assignments [evaluation or elephant hunting] the position assignments are subject to change at the choice of the crew.

Elephant hunting?