Black and Blue

[GarthB]

Originally posted by Rich Fronheiser

Every umpire has his own concept of what is important. When I see an umpire with his hands behind his back, I simply assume he is an untrained umpire that doesn't know any better. Then I wonder what else he doesn't know or do.

A lot of assignors feel the same way. Some don't. You have to know what is expected of you where you live and at the levels you work.

Rich

[Edited by Rich Fronheiser on Jul 29th, 2003 at 09:01 AM]

Rich:

I instantly know the level of any umpire around here who works with his hands behind his back. He works the lower levels of youth ball.

How do I know that? Because no one who uses that stance will ever move up in the association beyond that level.

Yes, proper mechanics and appearances are important. They set the initial tone for the game and as such they are an important part of game management.

We have two such umpires here and we assign them to work those games where their appearance and the perception they exude aren't issues....9-10 and 11-12 year olds.

There are ways of protecting oneself without projecting the image someone who came out of the stands to fill in.