2013 Ejection Thread

[IowaMike]

This forum really kills me sometimes. Nobody treats umpires worse than other umpires. Everyone handles things a little differently as we all have different personalities. As much as some umpires try, we can't all be turned into easily replicated clones of each other. Sounds like a solid ejection to me; I may not have handled it exactly like the OP but by no means did he screw it up. Guys always seem to be chomping at the bit to assert their superiority in here; no shortage of egos in umpiring.

As far as the discussion about saying "that's enough" not qualifying as a warning, that's one of the most laughable and ridiculous things I've ever heard as an umpire. I was a high school umpire first, then spent some time as a high school baseball coach, and have been back umpiring for the last five years. I never argued with umpires as a coach, but if one of them told me "that's enough" I would know exactly what he meant and that it was a warning. I'm friends with several coaches and have talked with them about their perceptions of umpires and umpiring in general. One coach told me he knew it was time to shut up when an umpire gave him the stare down with the mask still on and didn't say a word. I've never, ever had a baseball coach continue to complain or argue after being told "that's enough" so I'm pretty sure they understand the meaning. I've also never had to eject a coach or player in 12 years of umpiring. Part of that is probably luck, but a lot of it is also because I address unsporting behavior when it appears and don't let it snowball.

I'm far from the best umpire in the world, and knowing that helps me improve. I am glad I work with a regular partner now though because umpires (and basketball officials too) stab each other in the back far too much. There's a difference between confidence and arrogance.