Partner blues...

[Tru_in_Blu]

Had mine today working NFHS Freshman game. Home team pitchers were pretty bad. We only finally got out of the top of the first inning because the defense managed to record 2 outs at HP on wild pitches.

My partner showed up wearing ASA cap, shirt, and jacket, which is supposed to be a no-no for NFHS games. He didn't like that the teams hadn't taken infield yet [about 20 minutes prior to game time], wasn't pleased with how the coaches were managing the girls, or the talent level of the players, or that the catchers kept trying to trap runners off third base.

At one point, DC asks for time to discuss possible batting out of order. We approach the OC and check their book. This is the first batter of the inning. We're checking to see who the last batter was from previous inning. My pudna swoops in claiming that everything is OK because a pitch has already been thrown. It took me a couple of trys to get through to him that that didn't matter because it was the first batter of the inning. Turned out to be the correct batter, but if it wasn't, the correct batter could have simply come to bat and assumed the count.

With a runner on 3B, a WP plated the run. No other baserunners and I look up and he's still out at "C". I called time and walked out partway [apparently he's a bit hard of hearing] and told him there were no baserunners. So his bulb lights up dimly because when I got back behind the plate, he's now over in "B". We played on. After the inning, he claims he's just going to stay in "B" because there's too many baserunners [many on walks or hit batters].

We're close to a mercy game in the 5th, but home team scores a few to prolong. At the end of the 6th, he walks in from "C" and kicks the ball from the circle to the home dugout. I'm not convinced we're done. He claims that that was the 7th inning. I persist and check the score book and find we're only in the 6th. But he then claims that the run differential is in place. We're still not on the same page since there's a discrepancy between the books. As we're sorting through that, he's putting on his jacket and says he has to leave for another game. Tells us that the home team book is official [they have 12 run differential, and it looked like the visitors had 11 run differential]. And he proceeds to start walking out.

I'm over with the 2 coaches and their scorekeepers when they decided that enough was enough and they'd forego the last inning no matter the differential.

Home coach was not pleased. I got my game check, but no one went running after this guy to see that he got his.

Before the game he told me he was working the game as a favor to [insert higher UIC-type official name here], but I'd seen his name as my partner for over a month on the Arbiter. And that he ran a league and this guy worked for him on occasion. And that he was often asked to work with newbies.

Well, the game was a tough one, and I've had some like that before. But with him there it was just downright unpleasant.

Had one humorous moment. During one of those traps off third base where the runner tries to get the catcher to throw the ball and then runner takes off for home, the throw from F5 bonked the runner off the helmet and headed over to the dugout and another runner advanced another base. Time called, DC [varsity coach subbing for Freshman coach] coach comes out and asks if the runner was running in fair or foul territory. I said it didn't really matter, that she was in her "base path" and it wasn't like she was running to first base. Epiphanized, [yeah, made that up] the coach smiles and says, "Right, OK good. We never had this conversation." and walked back to the dugout.

Ted