I agree with you 100%. I'm probably telling him to knock it off and not even looking at him after that.

The NFHS has made it quite clear what they expect from assistant coaches, too. I just don't get why we would, based on all that, let them run over us. And then accuse an umpire of having "rabbit ears" when he addresses the behavior.

right, the OP referenced his partner....I would have gone with the same warning to the AC being that his comment was directed to my partner though audible by me.

Venting about the "call" is acceptable (to an extent) as an excited utterance and I can agree with you on ignoring or, at most, telling him "enough" if he continues to rant...at which point he will write his own ticket if we can't play ball and move on.

Generally, unsporting behavior is not so gray and should be dealt with more than just a smile. If that makes me the aggressor, then so be it, I'll chalk it up to doing so for the next crew that has to deal with this knucklehead and in support of my state association, my assigner, and my governing body's emphasis on enforcing sporting behavior.

+1 on both.

I agree with a lot of what you said ... but calling this rabbit ears is actually rather irritating. Coach is on the field for the express purpose of complaining to the umpire... he then utters something to the umpire. That's NOT rabbit ears. You might choose to ignore this sort of utterance ... and honestly I would too if it was the thing he just HAD to say before walking away. But reacting to something spoken directly to you by a coach that shouldn't be out there anyway is the opposite of "rabbit ears".

Personally, I expect coaches and players to have outbursts of excitement and frustration during a game. These can be at themselves or at the umpires or just at the play in general. In the original post, the assistant coach yelled "get a clue" presumably at the plate umpire. As the base umpire, moving from C to B or back to A, if I heard that, I would probably watch the coach closely and see where he was going with the rant. If he continued with more utterances, then definitely that would get him a "that's enough". If the coach is moving toward you and saying 'get a clue' then that is an ejection, pure and simple, but if he is staying in his box and not directing the statement to anyone in particular, then I would let him rant unless it became a tantrum.

I feel that restricting for crossing his arms and 'glaring' at you is taking it a bit far. Besides, I would never restrict an assistant anyway, that's reserved for the head coach. Assistants simply get the door.

To me it's listening to things that don't require being listened to. I see it as reacting to something that does not require my attention.

I guess I should have said don't insert yourself in the situation, let them vent and get the heck out of there.

I may have misunderstood the original location of the coach in question. I took it to be in the vicinity of the coaching box doing his coaching duties. I took the umpire to be in C or 100' or so away. From that distance I have the umpire listening to things that don't need to be listened to.

If the distance is a lot closer than that, yes, they are probably will hear the dissenting of the coach a lot clearer and not inserting themselves in a place they don't need to be.

I guess I've said far too much and should have stopped at just leave it alone and move on.

Perfect! 10+

That is all I needed to hear. He needs to go. ;)

Peace

In basketball, an AC saying this will result in at least a quick warning to the HC. Continued idiocy would be an easy T. Most likely, though, I'm skipping the warning.

That's basketball, though.

".... but if he is staying in his box and not directing the statement to anyone in particular..."
This comment was clearly directed at the umpiring crew, and would need to be addressed on every level I've ever worked (currently working D1). Might not have to be an ejection, but the comment would be acknowledged and the commentator shut down. Small fires lead to big flare-ups.

JJ

umpiring crew

Translation: I got your back and you got mine.

This is what I was thinking when I addressed it.

"Get a Clue" = See ya
 

To answer you're original question about being "thin skinned" - I actually think your skin is a little too thick ;)

First of all, this is the ASSISTANT coach who just popped off. When he says "Get a Clue" - I would say "Get on the bus". There is noooooo way I am letting an ASSISTANT coach talk to me and/or my partner like that. In fact, if a Head Coach screamed that, I might dump him too (although restricting the Head Coach might be another option).

The problem with amateur umpires is that they let base coaches get away with that stuff and if you don't "nip it in the bud", you're just making it harder for the next crew that has to deal with him. Think about it, the Head Coach usually gets a little more rope than an Assistant Coach - so if you allow the base coach to scream at/towards you "Get a Clue"... then what are you going to allow the HC to say?

And to the one guy who said "let it go, you can deal with him later in the game"... that is how things blow up on you and then you'll end up saying "I should have gotten rid of him earlier". Take care of business and address matters promptly.