jkumpire

Most everyone else has given you good advice so far so i will not restate their stuff. But please remember the following: 1. There are three teams on a field, Home team, visiting team, and umpiring crew. You are just as important as the other two. Without you there is no game. 2. Fans are biased idiots, ignore them unless you need to eject them. To do that call game management in. 3. Most HC's are nice off the field, but have no idea what the rules are. All they want from you is the next call, many of them think they can intimidate you. to get what they want if they yell often enough, or find you weak point. Never forget. Ignore, look, warn, restrict, eject. 4 Many Asst coaches are known as 'Rats' with good reason. They are to be seen and not heard. Most are completely clueless, if they start squeaking at you, dump 'em or restrict 'em and the HC to the dugout. 5. Players know nothing about the rules of the game, and all they seem to do is whine. Lay down the law to F2 early on, and you will have no problems with them. 6. You as an umpire are part of the educational process of young men, that includes teaching them how to win, how to lose, how to deal with authority figures, and how to deal with tough breaks, as they will in life. Be an educator by your example, how you carry yourself, and how you demand your game should be run. DO NOT QUIT

Ohio Umpires on the thread, Kyle said this for at least the last two years he was here in Ohio, and had a slide in his Local Rules Interpreter's power point in 2013 (or maybe 2012). Dan discussed this at least twice in his e-mails this season. Wearing these bands anywhere but on your wrist has been illegal in Ohio for several years now, but the message has not really gotten out for some reason.

G, It takes time to find a way to get and keep the straps comfortable, the kind man who owned my /= had to tape straps down, and it took a while before I find a way to keep the CP up in its proper position. Now I will see this week if I can keep it there. YMMV but I can understand Mr. Ump's point of view from my own experience with the protector.

​With respect Buckeye Mike it is prohibited, at least in Ohio HS baseball. I also believe there is a FED interpretation from years ago that in essence says "all equipment shall be worn as the maker intended it to be worn." The last two OHSAA directors of umpiring have said that wristbands must be worn on the wrist multiple times. In 2013 as part of the materials to rule interpreters in Ohio this was emphasized. And I've used the casebook play to justify keeping the wristbands off anything but the wrists. I've personally had to put up with a lot of flack for enforcing this rule/interpretation, but in OHIO it is illegal. As an aside I had a discussion with a fellow umpire who worked a D3 game recently. The umpire told me his partner, the PU in the game, saw the 1 hole with the band around his belt, told the batter to put it on right and ordered everyone else on the bench to put it on right. The team's HC came over to the PU between innings and supposedly said: "I have waited all year to see when someone would make the players wear them legally. You are the first one to do it, in game 32." I know of no prohibition in NCAA or OBR as you have said, but frankly there should be.

I was fortunate to get a UE protector for a low price. I have worn it probably seven times since I got it, doing HS and lower-level college ball. My impressions are: 1. it's hard to keep it where you want it with the straps it has. Once I really tightened up the strap that goes around your body, it stays better. At the price I paid I'm not inclined to pay and extra $30 (I think that's the price) for a Delta Flex to get a better fit. 2. It is cooler than my Carlucci, but the protection is not any better. Is it worth $275 retail? Maybe, maybe not. It would be cooler than a WV, especially my Douglas West Vest I had many years ago now. I regret selling that a little more each day. 3. It seems to be lower profile that a WV, something positive for the protector. I can sure throw balls to F1 much better with it than with my Carlucci. 4. The plastic shoulder protectors could be much better, but that is not really that big of a deal, how many times do we get hit at the shoulder joint in a season? But my Carlucci and a WV have better protection there. 5. It seems pretty light weight and I love that a lot. 6. The neck opening is not nearly wide enough for me, and yes I do have a fairly thick neck. It is uncomfortable to put it on and does sometimes irritate my neck. My Carlucci is much more comfortable around my neck, as was my Douglas. My conclusion: Good protector, not worth $275 if you are buying it new but it's light and comfortable to wear. That is a car payment for many of us, whether it is worth it or not is up to you. I will keep it and use in hot weather when My Carlucci is too warm for me. If you are going to pay that much for a protector spend the extra $$ and get a Delta Flex harness and don't mess with the strapping you get with the protector.

I'm of two minds on this thread. 1. Are these people umpires, or just volunteers making sure the kids can play? 2. How are they treated by the adult participants in the league they are in? 3. What does the league require of their umpires? Are they treated well by fans, players and league management, and are they paid enough to afford some kind of decent equipment? In many places these days when you put on the gear and look 'professional' it makes you a target for parents and others who don't care about the game or really their kids. They only want their kids to win and couldn't care less how an umpire dresses, what his mechanics are, how hard they work and hustle, and maybe the fact that because their team or kid didn't get the call, they are being cheated and lied to by some ogre. Look at how umpires are treated by popular media, when have you ever seen an umpire in proper dress, properly making a call? Yes, there are people who should know better who are a sorry excuse for umpires, but many times are they people who have been trained or shown how to become real umpires? A volunteer who goes out and does things for kids should have some respect and tolerance shown them. I will never forget when I was a kid, I was 16 or 17 at the time, and I went to see my brother umpire a game. He was 14 years old, using catcher's gear, wearing shorts, having his hat turned backwards, and being paid all of $5 per game, umpiring 9 or 10 year-olds by himself in some city-run recreation league. He never umpired before, he was a kid helping out kids, and he was cussed at, threatened, and yelled at all game long by one or two dads. There was almost a fight after the game and I drove him home instead of letting him ride his bike home because I didn't know if he would be safe. After that, I try real real hard not to look down on people who are umpiring because kids need an umpire. And these days I am growing less tolerant of parents and so-called volunteer 'coaches' who yell, rant, rave, and look like an NCAA D1 hoops coach in a TV game, doing everything but physically abusing people who are to help kids.

Not what I expected so far...

​It would still be hard, something like 11-12 hour drive from home, or $600 Rt airfare minimum and can't get home flight if I don't leave before like 2:00 P.M. on Saturday. Still I'm not done getting better either... thanks

Silly question I know, but Sunday is not possible for me, being a member of the clergy. Is a 2 day deal possible, or will I be missing too much? Also being a vet, would I be taking a spot from a younger guy? Are these games D1?

On the HS or college level during school season, I have not ejected a coach for a while. In some places I work, I think coaches behavior has improved, in other places it has deteriorated. I am curious about this board's perception of coaches in the area the members work in. If it is worse do you have suggestions to improve it by rule change or other option? I may post the reason for this if there is interest in the poll.

As our good friend Jim Evans says about some plays you see in a game "You just can't make the player disappear". No interference as described, if that's the call you made, good job!

​Isn't that the name of a James Bond movie from the 70's?

I'm confused, the thread title says "BU indicator". Does that mean someone has developed a new indicator for Base Umpires? How does it work? What is it like? Does it beep? Does it order pizza for the crew in the bottom of the 6th or 8th?

Tough call, but just like every one you had in your career, you made the right call. May God bless you and your family in the coming days, and hopefully you will have the opportunity to work again some day. Enjoy every day you have with your wife and kids! .

Is the batter in the box? Does he do anything intentional to hinder F2's attempt to tag the runner? If it is a legal pitch the batter has a right to attempt to hit the ball, he does not have the right to move in some way to hinder or stop F2 from catching the pitch and making a play on R3. You have eyes, you have studied the rules, you know by experience what interference is, your judgement rules. If you are missing one of those three things (experience, knowledge, or good judgement) make the best call you can and learn form it.

BillKen and tcasterlin were excellent men to work with on their last sales. Other than the fact I am now broke (not their fault) the experience was perfect! Thank you men!

the throw is not the 1st play by the infielder. good job!

​Absolutely, the coding was out of date. And this software is much more on the leading edge. ​I try real hard never to comment on site changes because the owners have the right to do this and they put in the work to give us this resource. But these comments are very interesting. 1. So what if the coding is 'out of date', whatever that really means. What matters to me is ease of use because I do not spend all my time here nor am I spending cash directly on the site. It seems like it is never possible to update a web site's code without redoing the front end experience so that it becomes less convenient to use. It has happened to many sites I use recently, instead of having a simple basic, easy to read, easy to use format for threads, everything supposedly looks better but functionally it is harder to use. 2. I appreciate the fact that with different media options out there these days something have to get changed over time, but it is sad that 'leading edge' always seems to mean leaving ease of use, consistency of what a uses sees, and stability behind. I hope it works out well for you and the other users on the site. I'm am not sure it is worth my time to get used to it.

May God's grace be with you! Tell us how the game goes. Big ump, blessings on your too.

Thanls for the reply Maven, but I quoted the same case book play in my post. May just have to disagree here.

Maven, I believe you are wrong here in FED, and the difference is throwing the bat as opposed to dropping it. Throwing the bat is by definition intentionally doing something to interfere with the play. In the situation discussed here the batter does nothing intentional, hence there is not interference. In the 7-3-6 case play the bat is not dropped, it slips out of the fielder's hands, i.e, the bat goes a distance, or better put thrown. In the OP, the bat just cannot disapear.

The closest situation in the case book is 8-4-1-i: 8.4.1 SITUATION I: B1 swings and misses a pitch for strike three. The ball ricochets from F2's mitt and rolls several feet down the first-base line in fair territory. As F2 goes for the ball, B1 accidently kicks or steps on the ball. RULING: If, in the judgment of the umpire, B1 did not intentionally interfere, then the ball remains alive and the play stands. Yes I know it has nothing to do with a bat, but the key in the rule in the intent of the batter. If the batter did not deliberately use the bat to interferew with F2's play you have nothing in this case. The 7.3.6 casebookplay reads: 7.3.6 SITUATION: In hitting a slow roller to F5, the (a) whole bat slips out of his hands and interferes with F5 or (b) his bat breaks and hits the ball or F5 as F5 attempts to field the ball. RULING: In (a), the ball is dead immediately. B1 is declared out for interference, because B1 is responsible for controlling his bat and not allowing it to interfere with a defensive player attempting a play. In (b), there is no penalty and the ball remains live. It is a very different situation with a fair hit ball that the bat interferes with. How this could I happen I reall can't imagine inthe real world, but its there. .

Sir, you are a good man and I respect your opinion. However you are 100% wrong in this case. I wore this style Carlucci, took foul tips in D1 games on it, and never felt a thing. It is warm, but other than that you can't beat it. I sold this to a friend for $150 earlier this year, who still wears it. Glad I sold it to him. I also have the one with the hard plastic piece over the chest, it is a marvelous protector. I wouldn't wear anything else but it except for an occasionally very hot day, or very low-level baseball. .

It's not really a crow hop as the title says, at least from what is an illegal FP delivery, he's not replanting the pivot foot and pushing off again. No balk. I saw a video on youtube years and years ago (say 5 to 7, or maybe 10) where somebody was teaching kids how to do this and saying a kid's fastball can be 5 mph faster, etc. It looks to me like the F1 is losing speed throwing that way, and he can;t consistently land it the same way every time. Good luck to him and his arm, he will need it, hope he as Dr. Andrews in his cell phone book. . .

This sounds like basic heel-toe circa 1985 or so. If it works, fine! Sometimes I do not go high up enough into the slot with my lead foot, but being 6'4" if I am in the slot and above F2's head I never have a problem with the outside corner. From what I have read here for advanced baseball you are fine, but for HS and below where some batters really crowd the plate to take the inside corner away from F1, this might cause a problem. IMO, do some cage work with the stance before you adjust unless you are a veteran experienced guy. Just my