Leaderboard

Today I learned that some masochist/sadist put together a 10U travel ball league that included balks.

OK, Here goes.... I've been doing this a while..16 years. 14 high school varsity, 7 Juco, D3. Without sounding overly cocky, I think I'm a damn good umpire. I've seen and heard all the horror stories about poor sportsmanship, confrontational parents, etc. Sure, I've experienced it, but it's been on rare occasions, and the overwhelming amount of the times, I've had respectful coaches, players, and to a lesser extent parents. Fast forward to this year. I thought it was me. I was starting to think my zone was inconsistent. Starting to think my judgement might be off. I know I'm getting slower. Maybe it's affecting my game. I've been talking with some trusted colleagues, and it seems it's not me. The umpire hate is reaching new levels. The overall tone of the games, attitudes, it's filled with anger. Dirty looks from hitters from every close strike, looks of astonishment from fielders on safe calls that aren't even that close. Batter runners stomping up and down when they're put out at first by a full step. Fielder yelling a runner is off the bag when I'm right there looking at a hand on the top of the bag, coaches looking for help on routine plays, (Not asking ..Demanding "You GOTTA GET HELP). Grief on check swings, no matter if I call a strike as PU, or go for help...As BU, whatever I call on an appeal, I'm gonna hear crap from the other side. I had to give a college coach an official ball/Strike warning in the 8th inning with his team leading 22-1. Another one a few days ago after his starter walked 7 in 2+ innings...Most were pitches his catcher couldn't even catch. Besides the ball/strike stuff, these aren't issues or actions that require warnings/ejections. Just ornery attitudes... No one's happy with anything. Yesterday, as we're leaving the field of a home team run rule win, a group of passive- aggressive Dad's start in as we pass loud enough to be sure we're hearing them "Every call goes against us, they all suck this year. They got it out for us. Where do they find these guys? They won by 12, yet they still found the need to make sure we heard them talking about how much we suck and that foul ball my partner called against their team in the second inning. ... Last week we're leaving a college field and after we pass a group of ignorant morons who were on us from the start we hear "Better luck next time, blue." It's taking a lot of strength to ignore. I thought it was me until yesterday. I got calls from two colleagues in the span of a few hours lamenting the sme issues, and questioning if they want to do this anymore....It's not been fun this year" is what I'm hearing over and over. Is it a bad stretch? Are attitudes worse? Am I worse? ....I'm rained out today. and you know what? Part of me is thinking "Thank God". I don't like feeling that. I want this to be enjoyable. It has been for 16 years, with the occasional misbehaviour here and there. This year it's rampant. The table has completely turned. The polite, no issue games have become the outliers. I'm going to put a big part of the blame on social media and the amount of umpire hate being spewed. From national media outlets, to Joe fan's ignorant hatred...It's trickle down to where players, coaches and parents all bring their keyboard warrior mentality to the field. Or.. Is this the way it is across the country, and somehow I've avoided it for the most part for 16 years?.

One of the things I teach to new umpires working the plate in 2-man. With no one on and a fly ball to the outfield, you have 2 possible responsibilities and neither one of them involve the PU staying at the plate. Just bust out and start moving. Once you are 5-10 steps into the infield, glance at your partner. If he/she went out, keep moving towards second to take the B/R. If he/she came in, keep moving as far out as you can to be set for the catch/no catch. If you wait at the plate to see what your partner decides, you are already too late to cover your responsibilities. I'm not sure what type of training your association offers, but what you are looking for is something an association should be providing. In Indiana, the state allows for only 1 official 'controlled" scrimmage (between 2 schools) during the last week of preseason where teams usually will work specific conditions. Our association also works with local schools to work intra-squad scrimmages and work with live pitching in cages. We have also gotten permission the past 2 years to run special scrimmages for training with our new umpires.

Like it or not, those platforms are the way people are communicating, connecting and “learning” and that’s not going to change. If you want a new generation of umpires that are educated in the field, I’d suggest some of the excellent knowledge, experience, and talent on these forums be apart of that future and join in the conversations on those platforms. Heck, if @MadMax were smart, he’d start a TikTok channel. He’s got the knowledge, the personality, and the looks to be a REAL benefit to the profession as an “influencer”. A good chunk of the information being shared by “umpires” on the gram or tt is just crap and, outside of myself, its rare to see anyone respond with actual rule book quotes. There is almost zero information on gear. Zero information on positioning. Heck, half of the umpires on those platforms don’t even use obstruction/interference correctly. I try to steer some of the young ones here but they don’t understand forums, to them they are all boomer Reddit trash. Believe it or not, umpires are generally well liked on those platforms (more tt than gram), coaches and parents do make very positive and supportive videos and comments about us, far more than you’d imagine.

Thanks to all the replies. It all helps. I'm sure it's a bad stretch that will improve. (Doesn't mean I can see the end of the college road not fay ahead. Special thanks to those who have said I've made a difference in their umpiring career. That's the best compliment I can ever receive. ❤️

Another sighting…Nick Mahrley

Took an 80-ish mph foul straight to the eyes wearing my Mirage with Cloud pads yesterday. Felt the impact, sure. 3-4 fans and both varsity coaches asked if I was okay. Honestly? It was a non-event. Thanks for a great mask, @DerekGDS and team!

Nice review! My two cents: For the All-Star if you find it slipping I recommend getting another set of pads and mixing two sizes. I'm a 7-3/8 and in theory the large should fit me, but the large slips, but the medium is too tight. M/L mixture is PERFECT for me. As for the looks, no, it doesn't look great, but I think the padding is the best of any other option, so I'll take (perceived anyway) improved protection and comfort (again, my perception) over looks. I don't notice the weight or have venting problems with the UmpLife harness (I did have them with the DeltaFlex, because that harness is designed for catchers, so when you wear the mask forwards the DF covers the vent holes - that's not an issue with the UL, but overall I do like the DF harness better because I think it slips less.) I'm pretty certain the shell of the AS is the same size no matter what padding you get. Mentioning that only because this issue was mentioned on the Rawlings. I'd REALLY love if Gerry Davis and/or @MadMax come out with a true UMPIRE skull cap - with great padding made for umps, but until I can consider that option I'm sticking with the All-Star and recommending it to all my partners. Overall what I love to see, no matter which one, is so many of us using skull caps now!

Speaking just for younger/rec level, when a Manager comes towards me after a call my partner made I make eye contact and give a small point (literally, I point) them to my partner. They almost always know they should not be coming to the other umpire. I also am proud of how the youth I’ve worked with will stand their ground when appropriate. Managers who think they can bully kids into deferring to an umpire that was 100ft away on a banger are ridiculous.

Charlie Ramos appears to have heeded your advice. Cool seeing some Davis stuff at the MLB level (other than those patent leather plate shoes 20 years ago)

... And it's a 3-man crew?? ... And there's a kid out-of-uniform (green T-shirt and shorts) prominently amongst the congratulatory Smash Group?? I can see why PU "took it" it went over the fence between the LFFP and F7 running that way. However, U1 wouldn't / shouldn't be slashing in. The rotation should have been PU continues down the 3BL to 3B, judging F/F (Fair) and HR. Stay at 3B for both R1 and BR. U1 would / should then watch touch at 1B by BR and "ROTATE!" down to Home to replace PU and watch touches of Home by R1 ... who... dis... a... pearred...

Giving cites. Quoting case plays. Sniffle, our babies grow up so fast... 😁

I felt like I was in bazaro word today. JUCO DH. Plate for game two. Pitch just below the knees. “BALL” …. I’m waiting…. Nothing…..few pitches later, “Ball that’s out”…. Nothing again. Close pitches all day…. And not a word from either side all day besides the occasional oooh or aaah. Maybe I broke the streak? Maybe I just didn’t suck today?😁… either way it was nice hearing crickets for a day. 👍

said Gen-Z umpire here, You are correct that a light comes on when they are recording; however, some products/businesses block/drill through the light, disabling it. The same goes for the Oakley Meta AI glasses.

Vanity, vanity... all is vanity. What difference does it really make? If the association you're auditioning for is a solely collegiate association (or, alternatively, led by collegiate umpires), I can venture an experienced guess why they perseverate on sartorial details like this. Insidiously, it's not someone who's 80 years old; oh no no, instead, it's someone younger... think mid-40s / 50s... What's absolutely maddening, is working for one particular association/assigner, who insists that we are to "look like the Big League guys", yet another association – often at the same or similar level of competition – insists, nay mandates, that we are not "Big League guys" and we will never wear that style of uniform (ie. shirts, shirt colors (ahem, Wisconsin just a few years ago), jackets, pants, etc.). Like that assigner / association head has a chip on his shoulder, or a grudge against the Big Leagues because he... oh... ohhhhhh... I get it. 😉 Again, if you provide the uniforms, then you have all the control and justification of directing what we wear. If ya don't... If you're too freakin' cheap or that much of a control freak over your little fiefdom...

I had the opportunity to work a HS game at Busch Stadium yesterday. 3-umpire crew. It amazed me how big the field felt and how small the stadium looked from the field. I started the game on third, but we swapped after 4 innings, and I went over to first. First play was a BANGER . . . they showed it up on the scoreboard . . . It was my day. Home team up to bat, down 1. R1. Batter hits it to left field and the left fielder misplays it. We are off to the races. PU rotates up, and I rotate to home expecting this to die at third base. It always dies at third base. There is a reason this is the Holy Grail. It never happens. Roundin' third and headed for home . . . no idea what color his eyes were . . . but here he comes. Ball firing in, head first slide . . . and I get the BIG SAFE call on the play at the plate for the winning run. And yes, I did it. The plate was already dirty, so why not. I think I should retire now.

There's a rule in the NFHS rulebook I will never enforce. Sure, I will acknowledge it, and recite it if pressed, but you'll never see me "enforce" it. Never. It is the most useless and unnecessary rule in the book. There are several adjacent to it that are real eye-rollers, and when you're an experienced umpire – at any level – you can summarize them as, "Thanks for the reminder, Overlord Obvious". But this one – this particular one – rule is the best embodiment of pettiness, pedantry, and the frankly arcane thinking that members of the NFHS rules committee employed in the past, and its continuance in the book (perpetuity?) just shows me that the current rules committee isn't quite "with the times" yet. Here goes... <ahem>... Rule 10, Section 1, Article 9 – Umpires shall wear gray slacks, and navy pullover shirt or state association-adopted shirt. Are you purchasing the uniform items for me, or providing them to me? No? Until that day comes...

Tell me you are over the age of 55 without telling me...................

There’s a confession – by the industry – to make on the Adams XV. The orange foam on that one? It wasn’t D3O. 😲 Yes, the Schutt XV was true-blue (err, orange), genuine D3O. Schutt was able to employ it on the XV, at a relatively scandalous price point (≈ $89), because they had sourced it from D3O for their football helmets and high-end shoulder pads. Schutt has had a terse, toxic rivalry with market-competitor Riddell, and has lost several lawsuits between the two. This put Schutt in a precarious position in 2018, when they were acquired by a private equity holding company. The PE firm restructured them, and their assets, and split their departments up (ie. sports). Officiating gear was relegated to the Adams sub-brand. As a consequence, Schutt lost its relationship with D3O, and their Adams gear could not use it. So, starting in 2018/19, the Adams XV’s were equipped with a generic EVA foam, dyed orange. Here’s where I need to disclose a secret, and confess – I didn’t use it. When my original Schutt XV plates gave out (cracked) in 2019, I was given a “new” set of plates from an Adams XV, sans the foam jacket, and transplanted my genuine D3O foam vest to them. To its credit, that D3O has lasted 10 years of near-constant use, primarily in SW-USA environments, and in MLB velocities. Not. A. Hiccup. So we’ve disclosed, the Adams XV is not real, genuine D3O. Only a Schutt XV from 2015 (debut) to 2018 has it. But even then, the D3O being used on the Schutt is not the same D3O on Davis gear today. It has evolved, of course. Same “mechanics”, but it has certainly improved. One of the big telling points, as you’ve noticed, is pliability. It’s less springy, more… spongy. More like putty than trampoline. That allows it to conform to the user’s shape more/better than simply sitting atop it. Someone a page back mentioned heat-bending the plates, and the XV wasn’t particularly good at it. Like its football pad cousins, the XV’s plates were primarily cast in ABS, but with a twist – because they shared the same molds as shoulder-pad plates, Schutt had “perfected” their shape to be as low profile, curved, and thin as possible, and likely optimized the recipe with a hardener so the resulting plate held its shape instead of creeping (flattening out). That, or they might have used polycarbonate (which is used for football helmets), which would explain the high-shine gloss finish on a brand-new XV. Note that Douglas, Wilson, Champro, Champion, and pre-Cobalt All-Star CPs all were… semi-gloss… more like satin. Telltale ABS (without an additional lacquer or finishing spray). Point is, polycarbonate is a b!+€h to heat-shape. I know… it took me many, many hours to shape my original XV, cycling between a heat gun and a freezer. Yup, the freezer. However, the +POS Cobra, the All-Star Cobalt, and now Davis DX-family CPs use HDPE (high density polyethylene), which while more expensive, retains its shape better with less material required.

I took my first glancing blow in my Enduro on Saturday. Varsity ball, batter fouled one back off my arm/shoulder guard - I didn't feel a thing beyond the impact! CP fits great, is aerated for cooling, is comfortable to wear and protective. Everything that one could ask for in a great CP!

Disclaimer….there are a lot of opinions and personal feel here 😊 All Star Cobalt: The short brim fits with every mask on the market, so you don’t get the “direct bridge from mask to skull” effect. (If you’re not sure what I’m talking about, there’s an article floating around somewhere that talks about bill length being one of the biggest overlooked safety factors with skull caps.) The shell itself feels DURABLE. Solid. Not flimsy at all. Unfortunately, that also makes it super heavy. I think it’s around 16 ounces or so — several ounces heavier than the Easton, which I already thought was too heavy. “Oh but I’m tough and it doesn’t bother me.” Ok, I’m not. Try a lighter one and you’ll know what I’m talking about after 4 tournament games in 100* heat. Ventilation…..what ventilation? It doesn’t vent at all. It’s hot, and heavy. The padding is probably the best stock padding on any of these. Between this and the Easton, they’re the most comfortable internally. However, it does not hold the skull cap in place very well. The shape is almost like a cone — it just gradually opens outward from the top until the bottom edge. Some of the others have more of a long flat section so they sit on your head more like a cylinder, if that makes sense. This one moves around the most for me. I personally think this one looks stupid, and you can’t convince me it’s SO much safer than the others that I need to look like a dingus wearing it. Did I mention it’s hot and heavy? Jadekylin Skull Cap: This one looks the most like a regular hat, but the bill is WAY too long for probably any mask. Again, no scientific evidence here — just my experience with the All Star MAG and GD Mirage. If it’s too long for the GD Mirage, it’s probably too long for most others. The padding is pretty stiff, but not terrible if you get the right size. I’d wear this one if I had to wear a hardhat in the field for some reason. Rawlings Coolflo: These tend to fit “longer,” but not wider. Specifically with the All Star MAG- I originally thought the bill length was fine with the All Star MAG because I had taken several foul balls and never noticed the mask pushing back into the bill. Then I took one last year that literally left a line on my forehead where the skull cap got driven into my head. After that, I swapped back to the Easton for the rest of the season. One interesting thing: if you order different sizes, the actual shell size is exactly the same. The only difference is the amount/thickness of the padding inside. A Large measures the same inside length and width as a Small — the Large just has thinner padding. I assume this is probably indicative of other brands to save cost on mass producing many skull caps at once, but this is the only one that I actually measured before selling the others. To help the fit issue, I bought a set of Easton replacement batting helmet pads (NOT the actual Easton skull cap pads — and if anyone finds those, let me know because I’d LOVE them). I used one of the long oval pads in the back of the Rawlings to push my head slightly farther forward. I tried putting extra padding in the front for additional forehead protection, but it pushed the skull cap too far off my face and made the mask feel like it was floating out in front of me. Moving the padding to the back fixed that. I also hated the pleather pad feel on my forehead, so I added some bike helmet sweat-strip pads to the front. That helped with sweat dripping into my eyes and got rid of the pleather feeling on my forehead. This skull cap is actually lighter than both the All Star and the Easton, so I was eager to go back to it once I got the GD Mirage. It’s what I currently use. EvoShield: First problem: the bill was WAY too long. I actually had one of our maintenance guys mill it down a bit just to see if I could make myself like it…nope. I also hated the gloss finish, so this thing was fighting an uphill battle from the start. That said, I do think it was the lightest overall. If they made this in matte and shortened/shaped the bill a bit, I actually think it could be a decent skully. But that was never going to happen for me. The padding was similar to the Jadekylin — if you order the wrong size, you’re basically screwed. There isn’t a lot of forgiveness in the fit. If you’re within about a quarter hat size, you’re probably okay. But if it’s too tight, it’s REALLY too tight. Easton: I wore this one for a few years before switching to the Rawlings. The shorter bill worked well with the All Star MAG. The inside padding has a nice moisture-wicking layer around it and is SUPER comfortable. Very soft padding. Unlike the All Star though, this one actually stays in place well because the padding has more “give” and wraps your head better. Honestly, I’d love to somehow transplant this padding setup into the Rawlings shell. The two issues that eventually pushed me away from it were pretty significant: It’s heavy. Slightly lighter than the All Star, but still heavy. It’s HOT. It vents better than the All Star, but nowhere near as well as the Rawlings or some of the lighter options. A non-issue-issue….the forehead is raised higher than I’d like it to be, so I feel like it makes me look like a Brachiosaurus, or something. Personally, with the addition of the little padding, I like the Rawlings much more than any of the other options.

Here is the article from Jim Kirk: https://www.ump-attire.com/Blog/Jim-Goes-Parental-with-Umpire-Cap-Bill-Length-Warning-on-Umpire-Empire-Post I realize everyone's experience is different, but the AS Skully does not move on my head all game. I wear 7 3/8 or 7 1/2 hats and use the L version and mine stays right where I put it. I just don't like the too-short bill, but I realize it was built for the MAG. I am thinking of buying an Axis Pro for the longer bill. To fix any shiny helmets, I recommend a simple coat or two of $5 spray-on Matte finish by Rustoleum. I've used it on several in the past and it lasted me several seasons. Thank you for the post. This is very helpful and more discussion and info is needing shared on these. I wholly endorse wearing one and the more that we can put out there, the safer our peers can be.

I think you just changed my life while I wait for @MadMax to make the mother of all skull caps.

Not exactly new. This is the +POS Cobra, revised... or Version II(?). Other than a few of us hardcore gear geeks, no one took this thing seriously. Granted, the 500-ton millstone around its neck – like Lex Luthor draping the kryptonite medallion upon Superman – was DPJ's (name withheld) failures in customer service and order fulfillment. The CP itself was a marvel, well ahead of its time. It was the first CP to use HDPE instead of ABS (All-Star Cobalt and Davis DX-family now do as well). It was among the first CPs to employ a multi-layer foam laminate "sandwich" for its padded vest, with EVA-TPU foam comprising the "meat of the matrix". By contrast, Wilson, Douglas, and all their imitators were using open-cell upholstery foam. The Cobra also offset the primary hinge, the joint between the breast plate and the shoulder arch plates. Only the Wilson Platinum (and the imitating Diamond DCP-Pro) and All-Star CP4000 (AKA System 7) ever addressed this, in their case by fusing the breast plate into the shoulder arch plates as they swept up and over. By offsetting this hinge, +POS was actually protecting the all-important clavicles better than all other hinged CPs (Gold, et. al.), yet still allowing flexibility – which worked against the Platinum, which would invariably flatten out. At the time of its introduction, the Cobra had a really funky harness (IIRC, it was 1" webbing instead of 1-1/2"), and lacked any other accoutrements. This latest version imitates Ray's harness, and borrows some inspiration from the Davis DX-family units; while it's still using SRBs, the SRBs are colored, to make locating them visually a bit easier. I do have to admire how flat and smooth the plates are, especially the pauldrons and ailettes, something that rightfully annoys All-Star Cobalt owners, with the odd, turtle-shell shaping of their ailettes. I also have to hand it to +POS on this, too... the abdominal diagonal creases will allow this CP to tighten and conform to the wearer's torso really well.

Coming from a coach -This is not "appealing", this is "shopping". Sometimes it's bullying. Sometimes it's gaslighting. Don't put up with it. Only do this in scenarios where it's possible you had a terrible angle, or didn't see a dropped ball (or if your partner has given you a signal they have something). If you're certain of the call own it - tell the coach you have everything you need, my call is my call...appeasing the request (even if you have no intention of changing the call) just encourages more shopping/bullying. As an example, I had a play at first where F3 jumped in the air to make the catch, and BU, <15 feet away, called out. Our bench was on first base side, so I liked my view/angle - I went out and said, "They came off the base, can you ask your partner if he saw anything?" And he immediately said "yup, they came off the base and then came back down in time to beat the runner". End of discussion. No appeal. No shopping. He owned everything he saw. I say another word at that point and now I'm "arguing" not "asking", because now we're nitpicking on the fraction of a second to when F3 touched the bag. I don't care how right I believe I am at that point. He gets a "thumbs up" from me and I go back to the bench. I also know now that this guy is confident in his game, and he's not going to be nudged by any coach. Nothing is more frustrating as a coach to see the other coach doing this a dozen times a game, and getting away with it...and even getting a call or two go his way. I once got a warning for telling an umpire to "own your call - you had the call right before you changed it, and it wasn't close; stop letting him bully you"...guess he didn't like me challenging his manhood. It's not terrible - it's true. There may be better options, but sometimes the direct approach is better. Some coaches live under the fantasy that the PU has the power to overturn the BU's call...or the older ump can overturn the younger ump's call. I have no issue with educating a coach that the ump who made the call owns the call, and that the power he believes you have doesn't exist. Unfortunately, some umpires live under the fantasy that they can overturn their partner's call, for whatever reason riddles their imagination. (I do know that in some settings one ump is "the boss" - we can only hope their ego isn't so fragile they take that to heart) *this may lead to a debate to whether or not an ump should have made a particular call at all - that's a different discussion, for you to have with your partner - but don't be surprised to hear a coach ask "who's call is that?" or "why are you making that call from there?" I'll go with the first time an ump had to educate me about this process - "talk to the umpire who made the call".

The bigger question is did you grab any balks for the pitching dads?

NFHS rules, varsity game. R1, and fewer than two outs. R1 was stealing second on the pitch. The catcher received the pitch and gained ground to make the throw to second. However, instead of moving directly toward the base, he ran at an angle toward the batter and collided with him. The batter stood perfectly still. The catcher turned around and argued batter interference and I told him not to try to draw the call. I explained he cannot intentionally run into the batter to get the call; go toward the base. Same batter, a few pitches later. The runner (now R2)was stealing third on the pitch. The catcher received the pitch and, instead of working around the batter, ran into him to gain ground toward third. Once again, the batter kept his feet still. EXCEPT this time he ducked without moving his feet. The rule says that any movement which hinders or impedes the defense's ability to make the play is batter interference. While he moved, in my judgement him ducking DID NOT hinder or impede the defense. In my judgement, this was the catcher once again trying to draw the call. I once again no-called it and the catcher was angry. He argued this one until I shut him down. My reasoning is fairly well explained above, but to reiterate: The batter did NOT move into the path of the catcher. Rather, he stayed in the same spot. Him ducking did NOT hinder or impede the catcher. If anything, it helped the catcher by giving him a throwing lane. In my judgment, this was the catcher trying to draw a call that shouldn't be called. I spoke with both of my area directors. One said I was correct. The other said I should have gotten the batter interference. Thoughts?

Congrats on the season. IMO, this is one of the most difficult calls in crew of two. Plate is often blocked off. Plus, I think it may be physically impossible for our eyes, which capture about 7 frames per second (a standard definition camera operates at 30 FPS), to actually see this unless the stars align in our favor. U1, especially in B or C, unless the ball has some crazy spin coming off the batter, is in a tough spot too. I had a conversation with @MadMax about this scenario. I'll let him give specifics if he chooses. Since that conversation, I've been loudly and confidently killing anything that has any indicator of being a batter hit in the box by a batted ball even if I don't actually see the contact. If nothing else, talking with Max gave me license to make the call and not wait for my partner who is probably waiting for me to make the call.

He's wearing the LE Orange version.

Did the same, just got it today. Seems to fit well. Will break it out next game. I’m over caring what people think and too old to care. I thought about it this way. Some people may think it looks weird or whatever. How many of those people would visit me in the hospital, or worse?

Beaks… just… grrr… @Tksjewelry, @wolfe_man, @WIUMP, @Cavalier1948, and several other fellow umperials have all either worked or met me in person. I’ve spoken with them, at length, about somebody needing to start and maintain a channel to foster training and enrichment for all of us. To a person, they’ve all agreed (to the sentiment), but then look at me and wonder why I haven’t yet. There are three reasons – two personal, with the third being one that affects all of us, but I have to be… cautious… about revealing it. The first is “focused effort and refinement”. I’m not the blogging type. I don’t possess that journalistic personality to just document everything and edit it all together, in summary or on the fly. There are those that can, and they’re tremendously good at it. The true “stars” at it are those that have the looks to… I won’t say match, but looks that don’t detract or distract from the message of the content. If I am/was to do a video, I’d want everything set up, prepared, scripted, sequenced, and optimized to produce a top-quality piece that can be viewed again and again. I don’t have that kind of time – that focused effort – available to me these days. Surely, the more I put it off, the less likely and opportunity I have to embark on it. I’m tremendously impressed and respectful of guys like @concertman1971 (Tim) who saw a deficiency, addressed it, and launched one helluva business. That leads into the second part of the first reason (and touches on part of the third, and most important reason)… how do you make this… I won’t say profitable… but productive enough to support itself and the time you put into it? Is it SocMed revenues (views & likes) only?? Sell merch? What else? I don’t have a “backing entity” to rely upon. The full second reason is looks. I’m a little self-conscious. I work manual labor otherwise, don’t get proper sleep, and have wild nutritional swings that result in breakouts and blemishes aplenty. Besides, you’ve heard me on the phone… I talk a thousand MPH. Yes, certainly, if I have it scripted, and can refine it, that incomprehension can be overcome, but it’s cropped up in my umpiring – I have had colleagues and coaches point it out (many have been very patient with me, some haven’t) that I talk waytoofast. But enough about me. Likely, there are some reading this going, “Man, this Max guy is loaded with excuses”. Sure, you can read that, it’s valid… but this third reason is one everyone needs to understand, because it has nothing to do with me. The third reason is “blackballing”. I cannot go into details; I cannot pull the curtain back (yet). But it’s real, it exists, and it’s a like a riptide – you can’t outwardly see it, but when it hits ya… woof. And it’s a real shame, because it is stifling the development of the next generation of umpires / officials.

Per @Velho's citation above. 👆 Oh, this is rich... “Preventative officiating, asking the batter to tuck the sliding glove fully into the pocket, could have prevented the situation.” The sliding (oven) mitt is often bigger than the a$$ of most of these players, it ain't fittin' in a pocket. Furthermore, of the entire rest of the NFHS rulebook for which to apply it, now is when you want us to use "preventative officiating"??!! Now??!! Not on anything in, say, the pitching section, or the fielding section, or the base running section, but here?! I mean, at one time, we were (threatening to) ejecting players / coaches (restricting? It might have been restricting) for jewelry... and that even constituted silicone bracelets in some umpire's "discretion". 🙄 Asking the batter to "tuck the sliding glove (in)" doesn't prevent the "situation" (buzzword of the day); no, having better pitchers who aren't going to throw the pitch behind the batter is how we prevent the situation. Let's get down to root cause!

Which tells you all you need to know about some of the lowlifes that populate various websites.

I'd just like to say that as a 3rd year, 57 year old umpire with aspirations to be better, you have been a helpful and inspiring voice on this forum for me since I started and I'm sure thats been true for others. Sounds like you are in a tough stretch and I hope it gets better. But you should know that what you do and share has a really meangingful impact. Thanks.

I have had worked several games with @Richvee this year and probably close to a hundred with him in total. He and I are good friends and I enjoy working with him, poking fun at each other, and sometimes getting dinner after games. He and I have had the "Is this worth it?" conversation this year and I am beginning to think there is merit in considering hanging 'em up, especially for those 9-10 hour DH days for JUCO. Rich is a very good umpire who is technically sound and has good judgment on the field (I did say we were friends, so off the field judgment may be suspect). I think I do a pretty good job on the field as well and I am seeing a lot more of the stink eye, the histrionics from pitchers, and catchers shrugging when the dugout asks about location. I also officiate volleyball and I have issued more yellow cards this year than in several seasons combined. Perhaps the solution lies with the tools at our disposal that maybe we need to use more often. Rich and I were working a bad JUCO DH when there was an unnecessarily hard tag at 3B from a team that had been getting its ass handed to them all day and of course the runner had to come up shoving F5. I got in both of their faces and used language I probably shouldn't have but my aggressiveness immediately got their attention and the situation was diffused. I also had to issue my first official ball/strike warning this year to a team losing by 15 runs in the third inning. Truth told, I kind of relish doing those things sometimes. Like @SH0102 just mentioned and @BigUmpire used to say frequently, shooting one monkey usually gets the other to fall in line. Maybe that approach will work. Maybe not, but at least you may have the chance to work on your ejection mechanics. And fans aren't worth anything except the check they write for teams to pay our game fees. I treat them like red-headed step children (sorry gingers). Keep at it Rich. You enjoy this too much to let the rats take it away from you.

Not sure if others are seeing this, but “by me” there’s a lot of turnover of high school coaches and you’re getting younger and younger head coaches who don’t have relationships with umpires and/or “don’t know how to act.” The days of the 20-30 year head coach by us are really over. I think that feeds into a lot of the chirping, complaining, and problems.

Congrats on the regionals. Have fun!! D3 playoff implication regular season DH Saturday, Juco finishing off the season Sunday, and a Juco playoff next Saturday. That finishes off college for the year. I'm also struggling with what the future holds for me. I'm getting slower, aching more. I'm not sure the travel and grind of college ball is worth it much longer. Weekend Dh's mean out at 9AM the latest, probably 1-2 hour drive, home around 7-8 PM. It's wearing me out. But the ball and money is good. It's the northeast, and especially this year, the weather sucks.(we're still in the 50's..low 40's at night) Being out there in 25-30 weather makes me question my sanity. The friendships and comradery of college ball is second to none. Weighing the pros and cons....I need to figure it out.

This is my biggest gripe with the original version of the DaviShins. While I don't have a simple solution, it is a big factor in the updated design we're working on.

Exactly, even worse when it's a volunteer based organization. I'm looking at you Little League. Until you want to buy the shirt and the patch you want me to put on, there will be no patch on the shirt I purchased. Same goes for our HS association and their gaudy oversized 1970's-esq patch. Love it how they mandate the uniform we have to purchase and what to put on it. Oh that's right, we're independent contractors. I almost forgot.

I do think interference should have been called. F2 stepped right on the bat, and even if it hindered him for a brief moment, it still hindered him. Think of some obstruction calls that are made in MLB where the runner is barely hindered and those calls are still made. However, I do not think the protest will stand unless the crew's explanation was that the batter-runner didn't do it intentionally or something else that showed the rule was misapplied.

When’s / Where’s your next game? I’ll bring my (infamous) clipboard! And I promise to say much, much more than, “Guhr, your timing was good.”

Straight forward FPSR violation. Should wipe the smile off R2 as it looks like F5 was not trying for a DP but R2's violation puts the B-R out also. "This is a safety and an interference rule. Whether the defense could have completed the double play has no bearing on the applicability of this rule."

We need to remove the term 'hybrid' from ours and coaches' lexicon. There is no such thing as a 'hybrid.' It is either a pivot foot parallel to the rubber for a set position, or it is not. And, the pitcher is only allowed to do certain movements from either position (college and pro's with the exception of 'declaring' what movement they will use ).

Agreed. Intent not required to call interference by a retired runner. Get two here.

IMHO this is an underappreciated quality of the Enduro. With both my previous CPs (Champro then AS Cobalt) I would have to pull them up regardless of how I had the straps, because they'd slide down (I swear I nearly broke my collarbone one year, but that's a different thread for a different day). The Enduro has no such issue in my experience.

Same experience for me with the Mirage frame on Sat in a Varsity game. Fastball fouled straight back to the middle of my mask. Mask on ground at my feet and dead silence from the crowd, waiting to see if I'm good or not. Coaches start telling F2 to walk the ball out, but I just tell my partner he jinxed me because he asked me how it felt to get hit in the new mask prior to the game and I hadn't had it happen yet of course. So he's apologizing from C and I'm laughing it off behind the plate and calling F2 back so we can keep moving. Buy the best and stay safe out there!

In our association, we are told to be "coachable". Listen to your chief during and after the game and make note of their feedback. Yes, sometimes you will receive incorrect feedback. If you aren't sure about feedback you receive, run it by your mentors. If you don't have a mentor, run your feedback by ANY member of the Board. As described, your partner made a mistake...three times. As described, you gave accurate direction AND...you were diplomatic and professional about it and not personal. He decided to take it personal. You can't control what he does so, you're answering your own question here. I don't work with people like this U1. I just don't. If I have to be on the field with someone for 2-3 hours working a game, I want a professional and respectable vibe. We don't have to like each other. We do have to respect each other. Block him in Arbiter and be done with this hump... ~Dawg

Here's where I care the most, Lovejoy... A multi-billion dollar professional sport directs – not "encourages", not "requests", directs – its umpires to wear a particular piece of equipment, and yes, I'll concede, they supply it... but that piece of equipment is not intended for said umpires, and to make matters worse, said multi-billion dollar professional sport does not hold the multi-billion dollar sports equipment company, with whom they have a "sweet ol' lady" deal, responsible to produce something for those umpires. That's where my cares sit. Literally, figuratively, metaphysically, rhetorically... take your pick. I will not ever sit there again and listen to a stool pigeon from "that company" ever, ever "impress" upon a group of umpires like that. Got it past me once, when I was a "younger" umpire.

Anyone see that shot to Scott Kennedy this weekend? I wonder if a skullcap would have prevented the knockout? I know I’m sold on wearing it. After four years, I won’t go without it.