dropped 3rd strike

[MikeStrybel]

While MrUmpire and I rarely agree, I appreciate him coming forward with the CURRENT instruction from JEA and the MiLB evaluation team. Thank you.

To those who insist that you must follow the guidelines of the best training academy for umpires, what now? It seems that the umpires who want to rise to the top - at least those in MLB and the CWS use the mechanic I do. I find the company comforting. If you decide that you still want to alert a batter to a dropped third strike, by all means do it. Be ready for the opposing coach to make you pay for that mechanic though. Unless of course, the assignor/team/league/association/partner wants you to coach the game too. Ask for more money.

[Rich]

Originally Posted by MikeStrybel

If you decide that you still want to alert a batter to a dropped third strike, by all means do it. Be ready for the opposing coach to make you pay for that mechanic though.

Really? Worry about what the opposing coach thinks or says? I think you're getting way too dramatic over such a simple thing here. I haven't had a coach ever comment about it.

Do it or don't do it, the sun's still going to rise in the East tomorrow.

(All we need is another Eddings play to shift the tide back towards making a different call, though. Time makes people forget the backlash that came from that "it's my mechanic" nonsense he spewed at the press conference.)

[UmpJM]

Originally Posted by MikeStrybel

While MrUmpire and I rarely agree, I appreciate him coming forward with the CURRENT instruction from JEA and the MiLB evaluation team. Thank you.

To those who insist that you must follow the guidelines of the best training academy for umpires, what now?....

Mike,

Were you to read what MrUmpire actually wrote, you would see that is not quite what he said.

He said JEA is STILL teaching the verbal and physical mechanic on the "no catch", while AA and AAA evaluators are teaching to simply "hold the point".

JM

[MikeStrybel]

Originally Posted by UmpJM (nee CoachJM)

Mike,

Were you to read what MrUmpire actually wrote, you would see that is not quite what he said.

He said JEA is STILL teaching the verbal and physical mechanic on the "no catch", while AA and AAA evaluators are teaching to simply "hold the point".

JM

No John, I read it just fine. They are telling their crews not to verbalize. The point is still a visual demonstartion that a swing occured but not an out. All along I have maintained that there is no need to verbally alert a batter to the dropped strike. We are not coaches.

The last line of MrUmpire's post: They believe it is the player's responsibility to know the status of play.

That is what I have written all along. It's nice to see that the MiLB directive is being invoked given that the top collegiate and MLB umpires have used it for the past year or so.

[dash_riprock]

Originally Posted by MikeStrybel

All along I have maintained that there is no need to verbally alert a batter to the dropped strike. We are not coaches.

Calling the out on the batter alerts the catcher - verbally - that he does not need to throw because you judged the pitch was caught. How is that different from verbally alerting the batter that he is entitled to run because you judged the pitch was not caught?

[UmpJM]

As a point of information, I just heard back from a AAA umpire I know who said he had not heard any MiLB supervisor say not to use a verbal on the "no catch", and that it is his practice to verbalize "no catch" in situations that are not obvious.

In accordance with "...the guidelines of the best training academy for umpires, ...".

JM

[MikeStrybel]

Originally Posted by UmpJM (nee CoachJM)

As a point of information, I just heard back from a AAA umpire I know who said he had not heard any MiLB supervisor say not to use a verbal on the "no catch", and that it is his practice to verbalize "no catch" in situations that are not obvious.

In accordance with "...the guidelines of the best training academy for umpires, ...".

JM

I hope you had a chance to watch the AAA National Championship series last week. Columbus defended last year's trophy by beating Omaha in a great match up. Versus carried much of it. The D3K happened a few times. No verbalization. Maybe the directive hasn't filtered down yet to those who weren't assigned the playoffs. A bunch of the CWS guys are former AAA and JEA graduates. They used the point effectively, after stepping back and away. One even had his mask off for the call. That's moving! This past CWS was one of the most professionally umpired series I have ever seen. Hope all is well.

[UmpJM]

Originally Posted by MikeStrybel

I hope you had a chance to watch the AAA National Championship series last week. Columbus defended last year's trophy by beating Omaha in a great match up. Versus carried much of it. The D3K happened a few times. No verbalization. Maybe the directive hasn't filtered down yet to those who weren't assigned the playoffs. A bunch of the CWS guys are former AAA and JEA graduates. They used the point effectively, after stepping back and away. One even had his mask off for the call. That's moving! This past CWS was one of the most professionally umpired series I have ever seen. Hope all is well.

Mike,

I did happen to catch a little bit of it, but I didn't watch much of it.

From watching the broadcast, since the PU was not "live mic'd" during playing action, how on earth could you possibly know whether or not he verbalized for the benefit of the batter & catcher?

Other than the sucky weather, the Bears apparently having "hit their peak" in the 1st game of the season, and my final two (fall ball) games of the season getting cancelled due to rain, pretty well. I mean, I could complain, but who'd GAS?

How are you enjoying the youth football experience? Back in my coaching days, I did some coaching up in the L'ville program. Some of the fondest memories of my coaching career. If you've got a couple of minutes to waste, here's a little highlight video of my younger son I put together awhile back from when he was a 7th grader.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZuuVul8tGH4

JM