Ump Ejects Himself

[FleasOf1000Camels]

http://www.southernminn.com/st_peter_herald/opinion/article_4fc2fb34-d082-5283-9da3-07847f9e4d39.html

 

 

[BrianC14]

There have been a few times....    that I was tempted, but no way would I walk out early.  

[VolUmp]

Umpiring solo.  Don't do it unless it's a scrimmage and nothing's on the line.

[scrounge]

The comments were limited to mild protest like "C'mon"...suuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuure they were.

[stkjock]

I had this happen about 4 years ago in a 9 or 10U LL game.  Solo PU, at the plate meeting he indicated he'd be calling a wide zone, however after a couple of innings the zone was probably 30-31" wide, 100% honest, so manager of our team is chirping at the PU as he's calling boys out looking on pitches that there's no way they could hit.  Next inning, same deal, manger gets on the guy a bit more, PU calls time, walks out in front of the plate, takes off his mask, shouts something and walks off the field to his car, drives away.....

 

manager was never warned and never was personal, to the best of my recollection, strangest umpire I ever encountered.

[johnnyg08]

Is it the ideal way to handle the situation? No.

But I know personally that there's no good reason to be out there alone either. It's pretty decent baseball and you're out there ALONE...on an island. 

It's not that fun and it's very difficult. If an umpire lacks the game management skills he will either quit, or do something like this. 

How do you expect to recruit and retain when you have to send the new guy out there by himself and experience that?

Oh...and I like how the slanted the perspective is from a bunch of players. 

[scrounge]

According to this Minneapolis Star-Tribune article, he not only quit the game, he quit the brotherhood altogether. I guess the accumulation of insanity finally got him to his "F#% this" moment"...

“I don’t know if the hitter said something or not. He stood there for 2 seconds and then he walked away. All the sudden I saw the ump walk over to their dugout tossing balls out of his bag. He said, ‘You guys go umpire the game yourself,’ and he started walking away.”

The umpire then walked over to the Waseca dugout.

“Don’t even send me the check. I’m done,” Larson recalled the man saying. Umpires in that area typically make around $100 to work a town ball game if they are solo, as was the case Wednesday. “Everyone was bewildered. Maybe he wasn’t used to people chirping like that. All the sudden he just left.”

The teams stood around for a while before agreeing that the game — a playoff tuneup for both squads — would just have to end in a tie.

Larson said he followed up with the umpire assignment coordinator and learned that the umpire had indicated he was calling it quits for good."

 

http://m.startribune.com/minnesota-umpire-walks-off-field-over-ball-strike-objections-leaving-teams-tied/437033423/

[zoops]

I don't necessarily condone walking off the field, but when teams are struggling to find umpires (maybe they aren't in this area, idk) or perhaps being cheap and only being willing to pay 1, they shouldn't treat the umpires negatively.  I don't see why teams feel they are entitled to "chirping" and "usual grousing."  Sorry dudes, enjoy your town ball games.  

[Stk004]

Once upon a time I played LL baseball. My last year was in the majors division, and being in western Washington, field conditions were always a concern. One day we start a game under good conditions, but as the game progresses the rain starts to pick up. The home plate umpire had a bit of a reputation among us, but nothing too serious. The field wasn't acquiring puddles or getting muddy, but everything was starting to get a bit slick. One of our runners crossed home plate but optioned to simply run through it instead of sliding. He slipped and stumbled a bit, so PU came out in front of the plate, took off his mask, said "We're done, field isn't safe" and walked off. His poor partner was left on the field thinking "What......... just happened," exchanging blank stares with both coaches. Eventually the base umpire left as well and everybody went home a little early that day. 

[VolUmp]

There is NO WAY IN HELL this story is told accurately regarding the severity of the "chirping," and "mild protesting."

Certain comments roll off my back like water on a duck ... they are just so non-creative and childish.

Certain comments get under my skin, but it doesn't make me wanna confront.

Then there are the comments that make me wanna confront, punish, or … just turn the balls in, walk off the field, and say, "Just keep the check ... I'm done."

I've thought for 20 years, "Tell me I suck, but don't tell me I cheat. My zone either sucks equally or is brilliant equally ... but don't tell me I have a favorite in this game."

- "You're taking it away from the kids, Blue."

- "This game is not about you, Blue."

- "Come on, Blue … call it both ways!"

- "Let the kids decide the game, Blue!"

These are examples of comments that seem to be acceptable from the gallery, but they are very personal, very hurtful, and directed at one's character.  I know plenty of people who would quit umpiring over these constant comments.  Even the one-word daggers of the day like, "Wow ..." and "Really?" Are annoying as hell ... especially when they are repeated two or three times after we ignore them.

When an ignorant parent accuses me of not knowing the rules, yet the coach doesn't argue because he does know the rules, I think it makes the parent look stupid.  When a Coach accuses me of not knowing the rules, and he later realizes we called it correctly, I wonder how the parents feel about their beloved coach.

Smart coaches KNOW how to deliver a message to an umpire in a positive way that also rubs off on the parents and players:

- "He's called that pitch a strike three times now — SWING THE BAT!"

- "I don't care if you don't like the pitch at the knees ... tonight that's a strike. Quit looking at me and hit it!"

- "We've got a college strike zone tonight. Don't swing at anything high. He's calling it both ways."

All three of these comments are complaints.

None of them "sound" like complaints.

These coaches are going to get those ten extra pitches that could go either way. The coach that gripes all night is gonna lose those ten extra pitches that could go either way.

I have no problem whatsoever with how this umpire in the OP handled this situation. I'm just sorry if he was a decent umpire that it ended the way that it did.

[johnnyg08]

What the article fails to mention is that the writer of the article is also the manager of the St. Peter team. 

 

 

[blue32]

16 hours ago, johnnyg08 said:

What the article fails to mention is that the writer of the article is also the manager of the St. Peter team. 

 

 

He's also a career .244 in 12 years in this elite league, and a whopping .194 this season, so yeah, he's a trusted expert on balls and strikes as well. 

[johnnyg08]

On 7/31/2017 at 1:46 PM, blue32 said:

He's also a career .244 in 12 years in this elite league, and a whopping .194 this season, so yeah, he's a trusted expert on balls and strikes as well.