What should happen to this ump

The local umpire is exactly why many coaches are afraid to protest a call. I teach coaches how to protest and I teach umpires how to handle them. My idea has always been that somebody was going to learn something. If the umpire is wrong then he learns. If the coach is wrong then he learns.
Any umpire that gets mad about being protested and adjusts his calls accordingly has no business umpiring at any level. Our job is to unpartially report what has happened in the game. Our ego has no business biasing our calls.

And yet, retaliation is the norm.

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Originally posted by Midlo Dad:
And yet, retaliation is the norm.

I don't know if it is the norm but it definately happens more than it should.

In my humble opinion, the best umpires try to make the game about the game and not about themselves.

Also, the best coaches make the game about the game and not themselves.

As a fan \ parent, I don't go to watch umpires umpire or coaches coach, I go to watch players play.

Fans will oohh and aahh about balls and strikes and question the coaches decisions (bunt, take pitcher out, leave him in, steal, hit and run, etc) but at the end of the day, the thing that floats our boat is great players making great plays.

Make it about that and everyone goes home happy...

Just my opinion.

IMHO this umpire should be suspended at least one game. There is no room for resoning like this, the game is about and for the kids.....PERIOD.

quote:

Originally posted by Midlo Dad:
And yet, retaliation is the norm.

It is not the norm, even in youth games. If I am made aware of a situation where a umpire is retaliating for any reason, I do everything in my power to get his schedule pulled.
My the same token if I am made aware of a coach that is being unrealisticly argumentative, I will make sure I put an umpire that can handle him and nip the behavior. This doesn't mean he is out to gun him but to teach him proper decourum.
This is way more common in youth sports than a renegade umpire. Most guys that would do something so dispicable as cheat a young game don't usually graviate to the umpiring ranks.

Well said MST

This looks like a pro game. That ump's pro career is over.

Michael,

I was being somewhat facetious. No, it's not the norm. But I do agree with tfox, it happens too often. Well, once is too often. It happens too often to ignore, but it is all too often ignored, and IMHO, when alone amongst themselves umps often reinforce this behavior by telling each other they need to do it to maintain their control of the game.

Here's an example I witnessed at a HS game two years ago. Pitcher's dad (not me, honest!) sits directly behind backstop and rides home plate ump all game long about ball/strike calls. In the 6th inning he crosses a line verbally and probably should've been tossed from the spectator area. Instead, ump starts calling EVERYTHING a ball until a run is walked in to make it a 1-run game, before he reverts to normal. Pitcher ultimately hangs on to win.

That's an extreme one. But how many times have we seen a pitcher make a face at a ball call, and then have several strikes in a row not called? I've lost count.

I'm glad to know you are a force for good in all this. Any chance you'd like to relocate to our neck of the woods?

The fact is, there are a lot of very fine umpires out there. The other fact is, there are a lot of guys who just enjoy bossing folks around and some of them become umpires. (And some of them become lawyers, too, but that goes without saying!)

quote:

Originally posted by Midlo Dad:
Pitcher's dad (not me, honest!) sits directly behind backstop and rides home plate ump all game long about ball/strike calls.

Not in my game.

quote:

Originally posted by dash_riprock:
This looks like a pro game. That ump's pro career is over.

I can't view the video from work, but if this is that old video of the MiLB umpire telling the manager that he dumped his player for "not being a man" about their previous disagreement and admitting that he was really safe when he called him out....that ump was canned by PBUC the next day.

quote:

Originally posted by dash_riprock:

quote:

Originally posted by Midlo Dad:
Pitcher's dad (not me, honest!) sits directly behind backstop and rides home plate ump all game long about ball/strike calls.

Not in my game.

First of all, I haven't been ridden all game long in many years. But in general, it would depend on the level of play. I have no jurisdiction over the fan side of the fence. In my college games, sometimes that kind of behavior goes with the job.

In high school ball, if it started to spread, I'd speak with an AD and let him take care of it.

But bottom line, I never converse with fans, for any reason.

All that said, it this was member of a teams staff, I would deal with it, immediately.

We play regularly in a tournament in PA where the umpiring is terrible and is led by the assignor who is the worst-- he has thrown me for asking for an explanation on a call --he has threatened to have fans arrested after he got into a heated discussion with them--they even argued rules with a coach who is/was on the HS rules committee and openly proclaimed to the coach, loud enough for all to hear in the stands - "I don't give a hoot what committee you are on !!!"

I asked the tournament director about him and got a real great answer " We know how bad he is. He has trouble with every coach. But he is the assignor and if I fire him I get not umpires. He controls them."

Now that I'm home and viewed the video, I see it is the one I mentioned.

This video is nearly three years old. PBUC acted immediately and dismissed this umpire. As I recall, he was a Wendlestedt grad and was on the reserve list after PBUC, meaning PBUC had passed on him once and then hired him when they experienced more than expected opennings. Their first assesment proved accurate in the long run.

quote:

Originally posted by Jimmy03:

quote:

Originally posted by dash_riprock:

quote:

Originally posted by Midlo Dad:
Pitcher's dad (not me, honest!) sits directly behind backstop and rides home plate ump all game long about ball/strike calls.

Not in my game.

First of all, I haven't been ridden all game long in many years. But in general, it would depend on the level of play. I have no jurisdiction over the fan side of the fence. In my college games, sometimes that kind of behavior goes with the job.

In high school ball, if it started to spread, I'd speak with an AD and let him take care of it.

But bottom line, I never converse with fans, for any reason.

All that said, it this was member of a teams staff, I would deal with it, immediately.

I didn't mean to suggest I would ever get into it with a fan or parent. I also don't care about fans chirping from the stands. But a parent directly behind the backstop? He has to move, and it's the coach's job to move him. I have only had this happen once, and the coach got rid of the problem without me asking. Most of the fields I work have the backstop covered and/or there is no fan access behind it, if there is one at all.

quote:

Originally posted by dash_riprock:

quote:

Originally posted by Jimmy03:

quote:

Originally posted by dash_riprock:

quote:

Originally posted by Midlo Dad:
Pitcher's dad (not me, honest!) sits directly behind backstop and rides home plate ump all game long about ball/strike calls.

Not in my game.

First of all, I haven't been ridden all game long in many years. But in general, it would depend on the level of play. I have no jurisdiction over the fan side of the fence. In my college games, sometimes that kind of behavior goes with the job.

In high school ball, if it started to spread, I'd speak with an AD and let him take care of it.

But bottom line, I never converse with fans, for any reason.

All that said, it this was member of a teams staff, I would deal with it, immediately.

I didn't mean to suggest I would ever get into it with a fan or parent. I also don't care about fans chirping from the stands. But a parent directly behind the backstop? He has to move, and it's the coach's job to move him...

Dash:

At most of the fields I work, "directly behind the plate" is where a grandstand is located. I call ball with many fans directly behind me and supervising each call.

If there's a chirper there, that's just the way it goes, unless he attempts to incite others. Then the AD goes to work.

quote:

Originally posted by TRhit:
We play regularly in a tournament in PA where the umpiring is terrible and is led by the assignor who is the worst-- he has thrown me for asking for an explanation on a call --he has threatened to have fans arrested after he got into a heated discussion with them--they even argued rules with a coach who is/was on the HS rules committee and openly proclaimed to the coach, loud enough for all to hear in the stands - "I don't give a hoot what committee you are on !!!"

I asked the tournament director about him and got a real great answer " We know how bad he is. He has trouble with every coach. But he is the assignor and if I fire him I get not umpires. He controls them."

well theres the answer........it stems from the head down......if the leadership is shoddy the association will be also.....if that is the type of example being set for the umpires, Im sure no decent umpire stays very long....and what remains is not good...

I left an association a long time ago for something much like this.....

Tell you the truth i dont believe we seen the full of that video i think there more hiding.

Some of the protest you cant protest calls of safe,out,stirke or ball. Just cause a call wasnt in your favor dosent mean it was cause of the protest.