Plate Conf WTH?

[pob14]

Originally Posted by BretMan

- I'm on the bases. So we head out to do the plate conference. I walk out and stand on the "flat side" of the plate, facing the backstop. Plate guy comes out and stands...right next to me.

I understand the rest of your post, BretMan, but is there some protocol on where everybody should stand during the plate conference?

[MD Longhorn]

Originally Posted by pob14

I understand the rest of your post, BretMan, but is there some protocol on where everybody should stand during the plate conference?

Uh .... yeah.

PU at the point, BU at the base (or BU's at the base) of the plate - toward pitcher's circle) Home coach (hopefully just 1) in or near batters box on his side of the field. Ditto visitor on the other side.

[NCASAUmp]

Originally Posted by pob14

I understand the rest of your post, BretMan, but is there some protocol on where everybody should stand during the plate conference?

The ASA Umpire Manual does specify that the PU should stand behind home plate facing the pitcher's plate. The BU should stand on the opposite side of home plate with their back to the pitcher's plate.

If it's a 3-umpire system, the two BUs stand side-by-side in the same aforementioned location with the 1BU on the 1B side and the 3BU on the 3B side.

The PU always conducts the meeting, which is what (justifiably) chafed Mike's rear.

[MD Longhorn]

Originally Posted by NCASAUmp

The PU always conducts the meeting, which is what (justifiably) chafed Mike's rear.

Not just him conducting it ... but him going out alone without telling me he was going, AND conducting it while I wasn't even present. The "anything you want to add" comment got under my skin. If I was less professional, the thought in my head would have been verbalized, "Yeah, chump - I wasn't here so I have no clue what you've said to this point."

[NCASAUmp]

Originally Posted by mbcrowder

Not just him conducting it ... but him going out alone without telling me he was going, AND conducting it while I wasn't even present. The "anything you want to add" comment got under my skin. If I was less professional, the thought in my head would have been verbalized, "Yeah, chump - I wasn't here so I have no clue what you've said to this point."

You could have told him, "yeah, thanks for getting everyone together for me," then proceed with your plate conference.

[MD Longhorn]

Originally Posted by NCASAUmp

You could have told him, "yeah, thanks for getting everyone together for me," then proceed with your plate conference.

Several "creative" ways to handle it and get my point across flew through my mind over the next minute or so...

[Welpe]

I had a jr high basketball game this last season that my partner started 25 minutes early because the coaches wanted to him. Considering I try to arrive to jr high games about 20 minutes before, this was not so good.

[IRISHMAFIA]

Interesting story from a fellow umpire this past weekend.

He overheard a pre-game between a LH or maybe an Local Anti-hero (LAH) and his travel partner at a recent 18U tournament on the East Coast. Apparently, it went on for 25 + minutes and includes a fair amount of war story-type situations.

A few games later when this umpire was assigned to work with the LAH, the LAH approached him to have a pre-game and asked my friend what he would like to discuss. My friend's response was, "okay, everything by the book. If you are going to diviate, we will communicate". The LAH was dumbfounded and asked, "is that it?" and my friend said, "what else is there?" and headed to the field.