Were your baseball games on a time limit? 1:38 seems pretty quick. If on a time limit, maybe it's more realistic to compare actual innings worked instead of "number of games".

And how do you figure that softball games are so much shorter than that? 1:30 is a fair average for a full seven inning fastpitch game.

The games were on a no-new-inning after 2:00 time limit (hence the 2:15 spacing), but all 4 of those plates went 7 innings.

It was good quality baseball on field turf. Lots of ground ball outs.

It seems the most important parts of this topic are:

There's no way in hell I'd stick around for 9 games and only get paid for 6 of them.

I'm there for the money, nothing more.

I'm arrogant enough
followed by
Mentally, I was tired at the end of the day. It's hard to focus for that long.

Not so much the "whoring" himself out part

I don't even work softball

top-notch college/HS baseball umpires don't touch that crap around here.

.................................................. .................

OR maybe it was this:

three weeks ago, I bought a chiller vest from GlacierTek Concealable Cooling Vest

What I read about RiteTemp is that the cooling would only last 4 or 5 innings requiring a quick change out mid-game.

The GlacierTek cooling elements will stay 59 degrees for 2.5 hours in 100 degree temps. The cooling elements are "charged" in ice water in a cooler for 20 minutes. Re-charging is same.

Simply, it works great.
Your core temp is reduced by 10%, along with your heart rate reduced about the same. It does not fool you into thinking it is cooler outside, but your perspiration is reduced by about 99%.

Whatever. If expecting to be compensated fairly for my time is arrogant, so be it. If trying to give an accurate background for a story is arrogant, so be it. A lot of weekend warriors don't care about being good on the field. They have 10 year old uniforms, have never been to a clinic, have never picked up a rule book, and are warm bodies who are happy to be there under whatever terms the assignor dictates.

And who do you think asked me to do all seven? It's not like I said, "I'll only do it if I can work all seven." No, that's the assignor asking that. I'd rather do 4 and go home -- 2 plates and 2 bases and I have half a day left for whatever.

It amazes me how much crap people are willing to take to work games. If you think it's OK to sit around for 90-120 minutes and not get paid for your time, then have at it.

I'd rather look at it from my point of view -- I'm providing a service -- if the assignor has a ton of guys willing to work on his terms, then I guess I'll stay home and they can work. Otherwise, I'm going to work while I'm there and not sit around doing nothing. And I get to negotiate some of the terms.

There is no way in hell you can be as effective in your fourth consecutive plate game or your seventh consecutive game as you were in your first or after a break.

Unless you were "pacing" yourself from the beginning knowing that you had to work that many games on that day. If you were doing that, then you weren't effective from the beginning by not giving the game and the players your maximum effort.

As for your assignor....I have ran into plenty of assignors who seem to thing that umpires are a "necessary evil" of running a tournament and just look for bodies to put out there without regard to how it affects the umpires or the games.

I wouldn't disagree with that. Then again, some people aren't capable of working a DH and being effective on the second game. I've even met the occasional umpire who loses effectiveness late in a single game.

Of course I knew I was working 7 games in advance and, no, I wasn't sprinting everywhere all day long. But I was always in position to make a call and I was still running and pivoting in during game 7. The parents, players, and coaches and the assignor all were happy with the quality of work.

I'm just not shy about telling people my motivation for working ball on the weekends. For the pure joy of umpiring, I'd probably quit after HS / college season was over and then work volunteer LL in July (which I already do). Maybe travel a bit to umpire, like I do now. But I do like to do some of this to make some money to offset the huge amounts of gear and clothing I buy every season. And maybe take the family on the occasional vacation.

98% of all umpires do it for the money. To be offended that someone says it out loud, enough so that you call him arrogant, is ... well ... arrogant.

Personally, I would not work for free (with rare exceptions --- a charity event for example), but I also wouldn't work if I didn't enjoy it. The day either of those goes away, I'm done.

99% of all statistics are made up. ;) Ummm... Rich called himself arrogant.

This is a weekend I had in May:

Saturday - About 25 miles travel to a mens tournament at about 1pm, and did three games, then traveled about 40 miles (with time to stop and eat a little) to a league and did a DH which did not get over until after midnight - didn't get home until about 1 am. THEN I had to turn around and be at another mens league by 0830 the next morning - another 25 - 30 minute drive - for anothe DH --- THEN....right after that was over, ANOTHER 25, 30 minute drive to yet another men's league to work.....4 in a row. :eek: All of these were modified pitch leagues of various sorts - no easy slow pitch games.

You think I was cranky by the end of the day Sunday? YUP

Oh yes - on MONDAY, had my work, ran to do a HS game, in which I had been scheduled to do bases - but had to throw the gear on, when my partner was late, and then after that, ANOTHER 20 minute drive to do ANOTHER men's modified DH...

I gotta tell ya, by the end of those three days, I was pretty well EXHAUSTED....:p

although $512 for three days ain't bad though :D

Tongue-in-cheek, but yes I did.

Flying to Washington State to do their state AAA Legion tourney in the morning. All 9-inning games and I'm not working more than one a day (for 5 days) unless there's an if game on the last day.

Looking forward to having some free time away from the ballpark, actually, and spending some time with a good friend who used to post here years ago.

Say hi to him - he's missed here.

Glad those worked because the stuff I got from Rite Temp is pure crap.

What do you expect from a company that cannot write right right, right?