Lineup Management
 

I have viewed the PPT on cactus umpires and find it a bit cumbersome. It also appears that you have to have a special lineup card for that system that the coaches certainly won’t use. As a matter of fact, I have gotten all kinds of lineup cards from small 1.5 x 3 slips to sheets that have to folded multiple times to fit in my mini clipboard.

I sort of use a modified approach to the cactus system with circles, dots (no cootie shots though) and lines through players’ numbers. What do you do and how do you keep it simple, Smitty?

I use the system laid out in the CCA Umpire Improvement Manual, with some modifications for HS. For example, once a sub comes into the game, I can circle her number because she will no longer be available as a sub in the collegiate game. But, in the HS game, a circle around a sub says to me that she still has one re-entry. When she re-enters the game the second time, I put an X over the number that is already circled. I believe, if I recall correctly, this is pretty much the same as Emily's system on cactusumpires.com. (Been a while since I looked on there.) No special card is needed. I am really not sure what it is that you are finding cumbersome about this form of lineup card management. I find it very easy to do, and very easy to track. I can tell when either the DP or FLEX are active, and when they are not.

I use the notation even if the lineup card is not arranged the same.

Maybe cumbersome was not the best word but using similar notations in different parts of the card meaning different things.

WHAT!?!? You mean everyone should do it the same? Where is the individualism? Shouldn't everyone use whatever system with which the umpire is comfortable and can reference with confidence?

:rolleyes:

No need for individualism here, since there is no opportunity to show boat your "individualism." ;)

rofl..... yeah but its fun to watch them try. :D

What Scott said, but I use a dash next to a sub the first time she enters. As for line-up cards, I think almost every one I have been given are the starters down one side, space for changes on the other, and subs at the bottom format similar to the ones in the manual or Emily's site. The system works just fine for me.

Since you metioned individualism, The OAOA (OR Athletic Officials Assoc.) and OSAA have decided that all baseball teams will fill out their lineups on the "official" OSAA line-up card, and all baseball umpires must use one method to record changes:

http://osaa.org/baseball/BaseballLineupCard.pdf
http://osaa.org/baseball/BaseballLin...structions.pdf

Glad I don't have to learn another system to do HS baseball. Some SB teams will use the OSAA card and it works just fine with my method.

like it alot and i do whatever the lineup card givin me offers...most of all it helped me to understand dp/flex

I use a modified version of Emily's system using circles and slashes/Xs.

I took what Emily presented and modified it to work for me. One thing to remember is that another umpire should be able to look at your lineup card in the middle of the game and know with minimal effort what is going on. Personally, I have never had this happen, but have any of you been in a situation where you have to resume a suspended game, but were not the original umpire on the game? If so, did you have access to the previous umpire's lineup card up until the point the game was suspended? That, and injury to the PU, are about the only two situations that I can think of that another umpire would want to be able to follow the previous PUs card.

One other suggestion I would make is to use a red ink pen/pencil to make your notations. Very rarely will a coach fill out a lineup card in red, so your notations would stand out. It's also a good idea to have another color just in case the coach uses a red pen.