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When you pull stuff out of your ass anything goes.

Agree on the logo. Way too big and visible. I love the flat fronts and have been wearing them working baseball the last two seasons. I wish these didn't have the expander waistband.

… Georgia for one, as the shining example (so far). Why? Check YouTube. That kid and the production team behind him are turning the instruction of non-collegiate amateur baseball umpiring on its ear.

Yep. "abandoning his effort to touch the next base" is the root of the rule. The run through, it could be argued, wasn't abandoning the effort to touch 3B but simply prioritizing getting to 2B itself over getting from 2B to 3B efficiently.

"No, no, no, Mr. umpire. He wasn't doing that horseSH*# run through trick. He's just got a wide turning radius. Look at him!"

If someone is able to generate interest in umpiring from those currently not umpiring, this is a good thing and I support that. As we see here on U-E every day, the inner workings of every amateur umpire market are far from universal. Many YT channels are out there speaking things that may be true in their markets in a way that suggests it's like that everywhere. Is there money to be made umpiring baseball and officiating youth sports? Absolutely! And I also understand like any job that pays money, there are ambitious people trying to improve themselves and work up the baseball food chain and there are people who simply see this as a job and don't care to improve. They cover games and don't go to clinics. LL is of course a great gateway to umpiring. There're guys working MLB and MiLB who got their start in LL. And frankly, LL guys who elevate to Williamsport are better umpires than I'll ever be. (And we see them make mistakes, too..."And we want to remind everyone watching that these umpires are 100% volunteers...") Perhaps this would be viewed as insidious but, an enterprising league or umpire association could make a huge impact by engineering a YT channel featuring a young person as the face of the channel, who is presenting skits with content vetted by senior leadership that actually showed correct mechanics and provided factual information about working the amateur game. And yes, the Billy Mays vibe was a turnoff when I saw Billy do it and it's a turnoff here, too...as my father liked to say when someone pitched him (usually a car dealership...), "I came here to BUY a car. I did not come here to be SOLD a car." ~Dawg

Baseball coach/assignor/program: "hey Mr. Umpire (contractor), we need you for a non conference game on the 12th of whenever and we are paying $3.50 (IYKYK). Umpire (contractor): sure, no problem. my partners and I will be there an hour before the game. See you then. Baseball coach/assignor/program (48 hours before 1st pitch): "Hey Umpire crew, we are going to play 14 innings. See you then" (no mention of $$) Umpire: (scratches head and wonders) So you want me to do 1.55X the innings for the same rate, and you expect me to just be available for all hours of the day? Well, I guess if that is what you want I better just show up and work all 14 innings and just take it or I may never get games again. --------------- Husband and wife in house" Hey Mr. Carpenter, we need our bathroom remodeled. Mr. Carpenter: Sure, I can do that for $3.50 (again, IYKYK) and i can do it on the 17th. Husband and wife to Mr. Carpenter on the 17th: Since you are here, and the downstairs half bath is also our bathroom, you will need to remodel it as well. Its only a half-bath so it is east and you are already here. Mr. Carpenter: (peeling out in his truck)....AUDIOS *&%#@ !!!!!! Why do we let these guys walk all over us? What we permit, we promote. Please push back. Just like when we let a coach scream and yell or we dont call a balk, we make it harder on the crew that works the next game, when we just "take it" we make it harder on the next crew. Just my $0.02 on being an independent contractor in the baseball world. Now, its time for an Old Fashioned. Thanks for coming to my Ted talk.

Velho, Thanks.

mask, outside protector, put feet right behind catchers feet and wear base shoes, cheap shin guards, and hold your hand over the tallywhacker area just like those new guys at umpire schools are shown doing, since u are working directly over and behind catcher, and or, go behind mound and guess on line calls. just wear basketball officiating uniform.

Yep...which is how it should've been to begin with. Such an enormous PIA.

Richvee, first, for those without Facebook, would you please use another format so we can view the play. Thanks. That said, I think one does need intent for this play. The reason is this: Who created the problem? The catcher, because he did not properly field the pitch. So, in my thinking, we are not going to penalize the b/r provided he did not intentionally interfere with the catcher. Does that make sense?

Gonna' go legal, "Bob"... ~Dawg

I'm guessing they knew the interferer is out on INT, but couldn't call the BR out on an awarded base, so they defaulted to "well, we gotta get the out somewhere." @jimurrayalterego sums it up best.

So back to the original video...... Why might the crew have called R2 out? Shouldn't R2 be returned to 2B if the interference was on the batter? Was this a total brain fart?

The difference between an uncaught 3rd strike and an off-line throw is that in the off-line throw situation, the fielder can only use the white base, while in the uncaught 3rd strike situation, the fielder can use either the white or the colored base.

I'm happy to announce that you will see some MLB umpires wearing my pad this year! Charlie Ramos - Woodland Camo Pad Brennan Miller - Sky Blue Chest Protector Pad Adam Beck - Switching from Team Wendy's all-black pad to UMP Guard all-black pad. John Libka - Riddell Power all-black pad MILB umpires: Dexter Kelley, Evin Johnson, Nelson Fraley, Brandon Tipton, Denver Dangerfield, Davion Frye, Dylan Hunley, Elliot Melton, Kevin Bruno, Stone Garver, Paul Roamer, and so many more! As we just passed a year of UMP Guard Retrofit LLC (January 16), we came close to 100 orders; I think the total count was somewhere around 91 orders.

<sarcasm on> but that is only two or three game fees. <sarcasm off>

That's how I see it: it's not explicitly covered and the closest by situation are U3K (INT and an out) or Runner INT with a thrown ball requiring intent (this isn't a thrown ball, it's a pitched ball which is treated differently in other rule applications). Both are imperfect, analogies can be drawn, and we're left searching for some foundational ethos to fall back on. Unfortunately there isn't one laid out in the rules. By that I mean no formal discussion of the "why" behind the rules (such as done in the US Constitution or Federalist papers - getting out over my skies there but directionally I think I'm right with the companions). Thus, we all have to do our own interpretation a'la J/R, Bruns, Wendelstedt, etc.

Like others here, I appreciate his enthusiasm for The Craft. However, the video gives off vibes of Billy May (RIP): creepy salesman, overly enthusiastic, with statements that are mostly, technically, true. Show me an area that pays $100 for LL or JV and I'll tell you where I need to move next. And there's no way LL pays 1.5x or 2x for solo games.

I will confess. I only posted the video to stir the pot here about doing one man. I actually thought to myself how naive he is so I am going to give him some benefit of doubt. He is only like 19 or 20 years old. He seems to have a passion for umpiring at an early age that hopefully serves him well. But, I do find him more annoying than anything. And there are certain instances where he isn't entirely accurate on some subjects. Like getting paid for Little League (which is supposed to be a volunteer organization.... I know, I know) or his video of D1 opportunities for one or two years experience (which he clarified later to say summer leagues and fall ball, plus, that he had to hustle the assigner (my words) to get a chance). With that being said, I see his attempts to be more in line to the teenager crowd and just the basics. I haven't seen any video for game management yet. Maybe his approach will bring more to the world of umpiring or officiating.

How about we ignore whatever caseplay entails 2 strikes and just call 1 strike on the pitch, a pitch being delivered being evidence that the batter did not delay the game.

This.

You absolutely can do that - you just run at the glove, or where it looks like the fielder will likely receive the throw...and make no mistake, the guy running outside the running lane between home and first is effectively doing just that.

No I wouldn’t apply “tangle untangle”. It’s not a batted ball. The catcher is at risk for OBS.

Brian Debrauer gives a lot of info in his double first base presentation. Off line throws, heightened awareness by plate umpire, etc. It's probably the most informative piece in the whole clinic.

Because there is no rule that makes unintentional interference illegal by a runner on ball four.

Hard to tell if the slide was late and there was contact prior to a leg and buttocks on the ground. That would make it an illegal slide. Also hard to tell if F4 was off to the side of the bag and contacted ( violation) or on top of the bag. (Legal contact. ) Sliding through the bag is only a violation if the contact is beyond the bag.

Your rationale for INT on a DTK probably is why OBR and, NCAA following, changed the interp that allowed hinder until the batter-runner was "down the line" to the rule change that eliminated that interp. DTKs at their level result in outs. Outs get us home and reduce game time. No longer in OBR and NCAA is distance down the line a criteria for batter-runner INT with a DTK.

Your Catcher, who was not fielding a batted ball but chasing a booted ball/wild pitch, obstructed the batter-runner who was running to 1B. (aside to @SeeingEyeDogunless you can postulate a "some way' that doesn't have him going to 1B) I don't have to award bases because the batter-runner did not attempt 2B.

On the advice of @concertman1971, I remembered to NOT put my ball bags on. I actually did remember my brush and indicator, and remembered to put them back into my ball bags after the game. I do have a spare brush and indicator, which could be stored with my coat when not in use.

If there is no rule making it illegal there wouldn't be a citation.

In case not aware, you don't have to have facebook account to view video in the above link (but I understand someone who doesn't even want to go to Facebook.com). Here is the YouTube link

Improbable sit but wild pitch and batter wants to try for 2. It’s a live ball.

It’s ball 4 . How can you obstruct a guy taking an awarded base?

@Thunderheads lock it up. Sold

I rocked my plate coat this morning for the first time. Kept me nice and warm. The ball bags took a little getting used to (they're not quite as wide as the Smitty XLs), but all in all, I enjoyed wearing it.

He's now a runner, so we would need some kind of intent to grab interference. Remember, the the catcher failed to control the pitch, so we're not giving them a get out of jail free card. In NCAA at least, we can call the runner out if he clearly hinders the catcher, ON AN UNCAUGHT THIRD STRIKE. There is no similar provision in the rules that I'm aware of on ball 4.

I can confirm they DID take the preseason video info into consideration for the test. Avoiding collisions takes precedence, even if they didn't fit that caveat into the rule book

Same JUCO wants to play 14 today. The crew decided we're done after 9 and they can put a coach behind the mound for the last 5.

I guess the concern with game times is behind it. Abandonment works

But you may have to send it in every two years when they change the clock thresholds by one second. So budget at least another $50 on top of the initial cost of this one.

Gee...not surprised someone claimed four and a half inches was actually six.

Since you are already selling me this car, you should sell me another one just like it at a discount. Actually, I guess the correct question is, "Coach, do you stay after to coach the JV team for a discounted rate?"

You really have rabbit ears if you can hear a shutter from a camera that's beyond the wall in CF.

Preach the gospel! That was my statement, almost verbatim "Tell the AD he should pay for another guy" These games are just pre-season scrimmages, but everyone wants to forget why we're there to begin with. to get the work in, see some live AB's, and learn from the situations. Appreciate all the feedback, I agree, the delay of game should have been handled differently. It's even pre-season for the umpires.

IHSA dues = $80 NFHS 2025 & 2026 Umpires Manual = $21.95 NFHS 2025 Baseball Rules Book = $12.00 NFHS 2025 Baseball Case Book = $12.00 Double secret probation videos = ???? Local clinic = $25 to $30 Over $150 just to TRY to get all the information you need to get on the field.

But that is a STATE (SCHSL) thing, not an NFHS thing. Somebody is still having to purchase it from NFHS. NFHS is the ONLY major ruleset that still hides all of their stuff behind a paywall and maintains it as absolutely proprietary (meaning you can no longer get a Kindle version; the only digital version is their lousy app). Even USA Softball, one of the biggest money-sucks there is, quit doing it a few years ago. IHSA (Illinois) sends us a hardcopy rulebook and casebook EVERY OTHER YEAR. We get no online access to anything. But we want you to call the most up to date rules . . . for $70/year ... whoops, my bad, up to $80 this year. I wonder what they are going to take away this time since the price went up.

Brand NEW never used Mizuno plate shoe size 12.5 $125.00 free shipping to the lower 48 states

Before I started using my Jordan XIs, I wore them on my lawn during a rain storm and did a series of runs and stops. They held up amazingly well--better than I thought, which is why I use them as my base shoes.

Alright <claps and rubs hands together>! Time to tee off! Now, before I begin, none of what I’m about to say is directed at any of you specifically, or even generally. If I quote you, just consider that what you said “hit the correlating button”… Get the popcorn.🍿 You saw this coming. As soon as MLB installed their 8-second rule, and made it stick, the NCAA took notice and was eagerly motivated to do the same. So, too, with this. I had actually heard about and bore passing witness to college umpires starting the action clock (20 seconds) as the (new) batter was approaching the box, not yet even in it yet, so as to “hurry things along” and counteract dawdling between batters. Agreed x 1001. Know what a solution is, or at least a significant aid, to this is? 3-man. We had 3-man in NAIA for a fleeting moment in 2019, and starting in 2020… know what killed it? The panic-demic. Then, that loss / regression-to-2-man was reinforced by the lost revenue and resources, and the reminder (to conferences) that due to Title IX, if baseball went 3-man, softball would have to be 3-man as well. Then it was further exacerbated by the officiating shortage we’ve got, nationwide. There’s a weird, disturbing dichotomy at play here, and I’ll address it after I rant for a moment… How ‘bout we throw those frustrating, overpriced, cryptic black boxes away? To be fair, I appreciate and respect the risk and effort that the designer and producer undertook to develop it; however, I completely deride and resist the directed compulsion that particular college umpires place upon us (as either underlings or colleagues) to buy and use one! Like it’s some kind of exclusive, hallowed divining rod or talisman, its possession and use bestowing on you the mark of a sanctified umpire! 🤨 It doesn’t. What’s wrong with using a stopwatch ⏱️, if it accomplishes all the rule-timing requirements? Heck, what’s wrong with using a smartwatch? Sure, it might be a little bit awkward, but what if you’re discreet about it? Or, even better yet, what if someone adjacent to this whole topic develops an app that manages all these timings, and can rapidly rectify adjustments to the timings digitally instead of physically? “It’s a bad look” or “It’s bad optics.” We gotta drop this bull 💩 “feedback” or oversight. If you’re able to effectively use and adjudicate with a $10 stopwatch, why do you have to have (by your own purchase!!) a $80 featureless black box??!! If you yourself want to use (and deal with the complications of owning) a RefSmart, then by all means, do so. That’s your choice. Just do not require me to purchase something that has no demonstrable advantage over my solution. Another thing… why isn’t the NCAA out in front of this? We’ve got electronic communication for catchers from coaches, we have wrist-“watches” that indicate pitches to pitchers (or whatever else they do), and there’s been a recently developed app (HeadSet) that silos that communication as the desired 1-way means. Why isn’t the NCAA directing and subsidizing a technological solution? Why hasn’t there been a partnership struck between the NCAA and GameChanger (as an example), or Daktronics, for implementing a comprehensive means of timing these rules? I have no issue whatsoever with the rules themselves; I have issue with the how, especially in that it typically falls upon us.