Coach: Warning or ejection?

[7in60]

Thanks for your thoughts. I'm up late doing some work for tomorrow and was hoping for a reply before I turn in.

If the game starts late because of me, of course we play 1:45. One team had 6 players at 8:55, and the last few came together right around 9.

Do you call a strike on any bunt attempt where there is bat motion, unless the motion is to pull it back? I clearly saw her move the bat upwards, even though it was above the ball.

I like your idea of firing back at the coach. I need to do something so I don't feel like I'm getting railroaded by this guy. He is a strong personality who I should probably take with a grain of salt.

Point taken re: last inning. Last Monday I told two slow pitch teams "it could be the last inning" in a similar situation (5 run limit, unlimited runs in the last inning). One player was adamant that I declare last inning, or not, right there. I explained that if the offensive team got to 5 runs, I would decide whether it would be unlimited or not (it would have been, due to time). He couldn't comprehend that, even with a teammate trying to explain. You're damned if you do, damned if you don't.

[wadeintothem]

Sounds to me like that IS "how things go" in your local league. With you description, ie its common, no certified umps, etc I doubt you will receive any semblance of support if you needed it. Our local beer league is very much the same way, which is why I no longer work it.

Dont take too much BS unless you want to.

Be ready to walk when/if you find out you are expected to take their BS.

[7in60]

This will be my last year working for the league. It's convenient because the diamond is 2.5km from my house, and the others are ~50 km away, but I'm more serious about the job than the others, so they can have their fun and I will hone my skills working with certified umpires. There is a shortage of umpires in Canada and I will have no trouble finding other assignments.

Next time I will call time and let him know I won't have any more. It happened late in the game so I was caught off guard.

[7in60]

I should add that, of course, the batter hit one down the third baseline for a double. Like it usually plays out, all of the nonsense was for nothing.

[MichaelVA2000]

Originally Posted by 7in60

Next time I will call time and let him know I won't have any more. It happened late in the game so I was caught off guard.

As former MLB umpire Jim Evans says: Surprise is an umpire's worse enemy.

[wadeintothem]

Originally Posted by 7in60

This will be my last year working for the league. It's convenient because the diamond is 2.5km from my house, and the others are ~50 km away, but I'm more serious about the job than the others, so they can have their fun and I will hone my skills working with certified umpires. There is a shortage of umpires in Canada and I will have no trouble finding other assignments.

Next time I will call time and let him know I won't have any more. It happened late in the game so I was caught off guard.

Good on you!

When I quit, I quit immediately. I Sent an email stating my reasons why. The people were horrible, it was like woodstock with the smell of Pot (I was umpiring with my shirt over my nose it was so bad), there was too much drinking, horrible arguing over simple rules that they did not believe in, etc etc etc, it was a nightmare.

I am also in the same boat in that my local beer league is close, my tourney ball is many many km's away. I dont regret leaving one bit.

[SC Ump]

Originally Posted by 7in60

Do you call a strike on any bunt attempt where there is bat motion, unless the motion is to pull it back? I clearly saw her move the bat upwards, even though it was above the ball.

Movement of the bat does not necessarily consitute a stike. If the batter made an attempt to strike the ball, it is a strike. If the batter moved the bat away from the ball or just left it in place without moving it and without trying to strike the ball, then it is not a strike. It is that fact, whether you felt the batter was trying to strike the ball, that determines what should be called.

Originally Posted by wadeintothem

... it was like woodstock with the smell of Pot...

...there was too much drinking...

Can you get the pot heads to mellow out the drinkers? Perhaps share their Doritos with them?

[NCASAUmp]

To be honest, if a coach smarts off with me, I'm not going to stoop to his level, especially if I'm doing kids' games. Doing so can, if done the wrong way, actually do more harm than good. Quick remarks set a poor example for kids, and if the coach has a history of doing this, he's probably heard it all - and probably has a comeback for every quip you toss his way.

If a coach gets mouthy with me like he did in your game, I just calmly call time, step back from behind the catcher and say, "coach we're not going to have any of that tonight." If possible, you can also wait until you're between half-innings, pull the coach aside, take off your sunglasses, and have a quiet chat with him along the same lines. Bottom line is that judgment calls are completely off-limits to him, and there should be no more direct or indirect disputing of those calls. If he wants to talk rule interpretations, fine. Anything else, sorry, that's how it is.

As for the time limit, I don't announce "last inning" or "probably last inning." I simply announce the time. "10 minutes left! 10 minutes!" It's a statement of simple fact. Let them decide if it's going to be the last inning. If you tell them it's the last inning with 10 minutes left, what happens if both sides go 3 up, 3 down? Now you've got 4 minutes left. I guarantee the losing team will have a fit if you kill the game, or the winning team will flip if you play another inning beyond.

[Steve M]

I'm not getting into exchanges with coaches, either. I'll say something to the effect of "That's enough on judgement, coach." A wise coach will recognize that as a warning - for the rest of the game.
For timed games, I'll let them know that we're under 10 minutes - and not get specific unless somebody asks.

[SRW]

We penalize the casual profanity with a local rule that basically says the following:

If it's loud enough for more than the player and the umpire to hear, that batter is out. If it's not the batter who said it, the next batter is out. Even on defense - if the defender utters the F-Bomb, then their first batter the next half-inning is an out.

It's self policing. And it works pretty well. I started one inning with two outs - the first two batters scheduled to bat were pis$ed off at the idiot on their team who kept swearing because he caused them to miss their at-bat.

[NCASAUmp]

Originally Posted by SRW

We penalize the casual profanity with a local rule that basically says the following:

If it's loud enough for more than the player and the umpire to hear, that batter is out. If it's not the batter who said it, the next batter is out. Even on defense - if the defender utters the F-Bomb, then their first batter the next half-inning is an out.

It's self policing. And it works pretty well. I started one inning with two outs - the first two batters scheduled to bat were pis$ed off at the idiot on their team who kept swearing because he caused them to miss their at-bat.

I don't know if we should institute that policy in Modified here. We just had a fight break out in the dugout last night because someone kept dropping the F-bomb, and some players had kids in the stands next to the dugout. One player even allegedly hit another player with a bat. Wasn't hard enough to do any damage, but the umpire, seeing almost the entire team coming to blows, ejected enough troublemakers to end the game in a forfeit.