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Fri Apr 14, 2006, 12:04am
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What next?
I umpired a couple of T-ball games tonight. One with a partner. The one without a partner went very well. Great game...lot of fun and kids had a good time. The game with a partner started out pretty well, but soon turned into another series of garbage from the same two coaches that I almost tossed a few days ago. (the two from the pit) In the pregame I went over a couple of rules and told all the coaches and assistants that I realize emotions get high in these games, but I expect all coaches to set a good example of sportmanship to the players. They all agreed, even the two from the pit, who gave somewhat of an apology, for the way they acted in the last game. But it didn't take long before they had my partner, who is a teen girl with a couple years of umpiring experience. She is an excellent player and has a good understanding of the rules. I saw her crying after one inning. Here's why.. With a runner on 1st a batter hits a ball between 1st and 2nd that is being fielded by 2 kids at the same time. The runner from 1st had to go around them. One of the fielders came up with the ball and made a nice throw to 2nd and the girl caught it a couple steps ahead of the runner. My partner called her out. I was not able to watch the entire play as a kid was coming home and I needed to see if she touched home plate. This was one of those times when two things at once required attention. Anyway the head coach comes over to me and TELLS me to call her player safe cause she was blocked. Like I said, I didn't see the entire play, but my partner did and determined the fielders had the right to field the ball so there was no infraction. So now the coach is mad at me as well as my partner, but I say let's play ball. At this time if she didn't start to pitch to her next batter I was going to make my first toss and tell her not to come back for her next game. But she got back to the game. About a batter or two later one of her batters throws the bat and almost hit the hind catcher. (we have a local rule that a team warning is given when the first bat is thrown, and the next batter that throws a bat on that team is out) So I yell out to her dugout "that's a team warning the next batter doing that will be called out"). I repeat the warning. Several in the dugout said okay. We have another local rule that allows the kid to take 3 pitches before going to the Tee. She was pitching to the girl that threw the bat and was only about 25 feet from me when I gave the loud warning, not once, but twice.
I bet you already know what happens next... In the last inning one of her players throws the bat. I call her out and here she comes..."Why is my batter out"?...so I told her "I called her out because she threw the bat and you already had a team warning. She goes on to say "what warning" I point to the dugout and say "did I not give a loud and repeated team warning for bat throwing a couple of innings ago? They all said yes you did Ump. She goes on to say "I remember seeing the bat being thrown, but I didn't hear the warning given and you should have told me because I am the head coach"... At this point I said "everyone in the park heard me but you, maybe you need to learn to listen to the umpire more carefully. I have never had any other coach not hear my warnings when a bat was thrown. I am not going to deliever the warning in writing just for you. It's time to play ball the out stands. When the game was over this coach from the pit comes over to me and starts with me again. At that time an elderly man, who helps with her team, comes over to tell her to get into the dugout the game is over the way you are acting is wrong. Before she left she said I know what the problem is... "I am not a man. I should quit and let a man coach the team. I am going to talk to the administrator about this". So now I am at the point of losing my temper and say "So now you think I am a sexist and we have an harassment case here???!!! It's the other way around and they don't pay me enough money to put up with you! Then the elderly man really got mad at her and told her again to get back to the dugout, and she did. I think that man must be the coach from the pits father. But anyway me and him had a good chat and he told me he was an umpire from many years and knows how difficult some coaches can be. Every now and then a fan would tell me through the backstop fense that she is awful. They can't understand why she yells at her players so much either. This is T-ball, not the world series between the Red Socks and the Yankees. Nothin' like fun at the ole' ball park. ..Al Last edited by Al; Fri Apr 14, 2006 at 08:31am. 
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Fri Apr 14, 2006, 09:06am
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My neice is on a T-Ball team and I've only been able to make it to one game. But what a game. This kids look like little pac-men running the bases. All you can see of them are helmet and cleats.
Bases loaded and a grounder to F-6. The BR starts running towards third base, runner on third is running towards the plate, first and third base coaches along with several fan are yelling.....nooooo, run to first base. Like clockwork, both the BR and runner from third change their directions and head to first base. It was priceless. 
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Fri Apr 14, 2006, 09:20am
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I think you need to do two things.
First, there needs to be a meeting between whoever is responsible for the coaches and the coaches themselves, reminding them that their behavior toward umpires should be an example to their children (6-year olds are just learning this sort of thing) of how to respect authority, and also telling them that they should always be in the frame of mind of teaching these children - not just how to play physically, but how to play mentally, and that even if the umpires are dead wrong on something, their tirades are more detrimental to their kids than the poor call was in the first place. Second, someone from your board needs to watch some of this lady's games and perhaps her practices. Her behavior in front of these kids is reprehensible. As an aside - I think you took too much crap from her. If she managed to stay in the game somehow, you should have tossed her when she made the sexist comment, even if the game was over. Intimating that an umpire is intentionally throwing calls for ANY reason should be addressed by the board before she can return to coaching. PS --- two umpires for TEE BALL!?!?! Wow.
__________________
"Many baseball fans look upon an umpire as a sort of necessary evil to the luxury of baseball, like the odor that follows an automobile." - Hall of Fame Pitcher Christy Mathewson
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Fri Apr 14, 2006, 10:10am
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Tom
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Fri Apr 14, 2006, 10:35am
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Suggestion - any time you issue a warning, write it down on your lineup card (if you are using one), and make sure that it is recorded in a scorebook as well. Now you have the written documentation for the coach.
Don't respond to her "I didn't hear the warning...." crap. Just tell her that the warning was issued, the out stands, let's play ball! It takes two people to have an argument..don't give her the satisfaction. As far as the coach's comments, antics, and demeanor, I am in 100% agreement with mcrowder...the league administration needs to be aware of this coach's actions.
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It's what you learn after you think you know it all that's important!
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Fri Apr 14, 2006, 11:03am
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Hey mcrowder,
Just before leaving the ball field last night I talked to the administrator about the problems I'm still having with this one coach and sometimes her assistant. He already knew about the problems I had in the last game both with her and her assistant. Her teams name is "thunder"... which fits the way she talks to her players and the umpires at times. The administrator is also an umpire and during my game last night he was umpiring 10/under f/p in the field right across from where I was. He told me he had already heard about my teenage partner being driven to tears. I think her Mom must have told him what happened. To my surprise he said she needs to be able to control her emotions if she wants to be umpiring any more games. I told him she didn't start to cry while on the field but in between innings and where only a few people could see her. Then I told him about the bat throwing warning that the coach claimed she never heard, even though I gave the warning twice and those in her own dugout heard it. She was closer to me than her dugout. When I told him what she said about her not being a man was the problem, and she should quit and get a man to coach her team he told me he is going to call her and talk to her. Then he said he was going to call all the coaches. He told me T-ball is sometimes brutal. He reminded me what he said about not taking any nonsense from anyone. I guess I just keep thinking this coach will stop being such a jerk and I would rather not have to toss anyone, but in her case, judging from the comments I get from fans, I feel her ejection may get a lot of cheering. Thanks, You're exactly correct. ..Al
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Fri Apr 14, 2006, 11:19am
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Quote:
 ...Al
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Fri Apr 14, 2006, 01:08pm
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This is why in the league I umpire in during the summer DOES NOT keep score in T-Ball, which I think is great. T-Ball should not be competitive as far as score goes. The only people that care about wins and losses are the parents. You better believe, though, that mom and dad are in the stands with their pencil and paper keeping talley of runs. Sad. So Sad....
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Fri Apr 14, 2006, 01:17pm
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Wait a minute...
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We see with our eyes. Fans and parents see with their hearts.
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Fri Apr 14, 2006, 02:38pm
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Yes, SRW, you did. That's what you get when you don't read the whole thing and just look for stuff to pick on. Read it again.
__________________
"Many baseball fans look upon an umpire as a sort of necessary evil to the luxury of baseball, like the odor that follows an automobile." - Hall of Fame Pitcher Christy Mathewson
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Fri Apr 14, 2006, 04:32pm
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Good story. My favorite part:
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Dan
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Fri Apr 14, 2006, 08:14pm
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Re: Hind catcher.
Al, are you by chance Canadian? This term seems common in "the Great White North". I buy a lot of baseball stuff on eBay, and everytime I see a piece of catcher's equipment that is described with the term "hind catcher", the seller is almost always from Canada. What's up with that? On to your post. Adults with this kind of behavior in youth sports really strike a nerve with me. My daughter's early days in rec ball exposed me to the absolute worst in outrageous behavior. I've seen coaches of this type run a fine recreational program right into the ground. How many kids are going to say, "Gee, that was really fun, being yelled at and belittled by my coach. I think I'll sign-up for more abuse again next year!". When this behavior goes unchecked, the league is in effect driving away players (customers). And then the clueless board of directors wonders why their sign-up numbers go down each year... By nature, I am a pretty mild and easy-going person. But my "BS" detector is set at a very low threshold! When confronted with yo-yo's like this, it is my nature to set them straight. It's part of the reason I became an umpire and league official. Given the history here, as soon as this "coach" said that she was going to the administrator, I think that my response would be, "Good idea. Let's both go and see him right now". The administrator needs to be made aware of somebody's behavior, but it's not yours! Clueless morons like this need to put a lid on it or else be removed from the field.
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Fri Apr 14, 2006, 10:43pm
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Hey BretMan, Hind catcher! I was always a catcher, but I don't remember hearing the term hind catcher when living in New Jersey. But here in TN. that's what the catcher is called. No, I'm not from Canada. I was raised in New Jersey. Went into the Air Force at age 20, then after 4 years of traveling from place to place such as Texas, Puerto Rico, Guam, Alaska, North Dakota, and Mass. My wife and I had enough of that. For me, the best part of the Air Force was meeting my beautiful wife in Puerto Rico, with whom I've been married 33 years now. We have 2 kids, 4 grandkids, another on the way. My civilian job was waiting for me, if I wanted it, so I decided to do that and went back to work for the (American Can Company) in New Jersey. So now we figure no more moving, right? But just about the time we got settled into our first home ...I got transferred to another part of the state, and just two years, or so, later got transferred again to Indiana. But this time we didn't have to move for several years. Then the company closed down and a couple years later we moved to Tennessee and have not moved since. We are here about 15 years now. My oldest grandkid plays T-ball, and my son tells me he hits the tar out of it! Too bad my wife and I don't get to see him play as he lives in Indiana and we live in Tennessee. My wife is now talking about moving closer to the kids and grandkids. So it's time to move again! I doubt the administrator talked to the coaches yet, with this being Easter weekend. I umpire a game Monday with the coach from the pit, but hopefully she will have quit. I have to do what is best for the kids, fans and umpires, so next time she, or her assistant, gets out of line I must do what is right for the game and eject her. Thanks, Appreciate your post. ....Al
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