IABlue

Here's the dump and resulting brouhaha: http://wapc.mlb.com/play?content_id=27738471 Go to about 1:35 in the highlight package to see what started it: http://wapc.mlb.com/play?content_id=27748521

I have come to the same concussion.

Sometimes, when its has rained and the parking lot will be wet, this Smitty even wears his plate shoes to the field Good thing you always have the plate when it rains.

Seems like several reasonable suggestions made from the perspective of someone with a very limited understanding of sports officiating. All in all, one of the least offensive pieces that I have ever read on the subject.

LOL, keep telling yourself that. This wasn't a pee wee rec ball game, it's the freaking major leagues. U1 had about 12 things going on at once. You wouldn't have gotten the OBS either. They got it right. The day I screw up that bad is the day I retire. No way I would miss something that obvious right in front of me. You sound like a total jock-sniffing fanboy when you continue to defend these guys on obvious mistakes like that. Edit to completely hammer home the point of your RIDICULOUS "12 things" comment. U1 has exactly one job on this play, and one job only, and that is to watch the action at the bag. That's it. Ball, runner, fielder, and obstructing fielder all within a few square inches. All of the peripheral BS here is just nonsense that a supposed professional should know enough to tune out, and in fact if you watch the video AGAIN, you will see him focusing all of his attention on 1st base, which is what he should be doing. He just flat out RAPES the call. You guys are acting like his head is on swivel vainly attempting to ascertain all of the key and varied elements of a complicated play. This could not possibly be any SIMPLER for him as literally every single thing that he needs to see for this play is RIGHT THERE IN FRONT OF HIM within easy view. And he still blows it. Just terrible umpiring. Thank god his crew was there to bail him out, and I'm sure he'll be buying them drinks for the rest of the season for saving his ass from national ridicule.

Super easy call when the runner lunges for the bag on the last stride like that. Out all day long and twice on Sunday.

There's no way around the fact that that is a major screw-up by U1. It's actually pretty brutal. and just gets worse and worse with every repeat viewing. No harm no foul, though.

Why wouldn't the next guy just take over in turn?

Not as much as Smitty wearing his pants to the ballpark.

This is a stupid post Agreed. Your post was dumb.

If you're cutting it that close, then get out of the assignment. You should not be accepting games where you will be showing up that close to game time in the first place. Anything above ZZZZ level rec ball should not have Smitty get out of his car with slacks already on. The only possible exception to this would be if you live literally right next to the ballpark. Even then, you would still be Smitty. Lighten up, Francis. Stuff happens sometimes. No one's saying make it a habit or go to work in your pants, but showing up to the occasional game dressed is Smittyville but hanging out in a parking lot in your tighty whities is the height of professionalism? You'll never see me in tighty whities. But other than that, YES.

I will echo the idea that those that have talent need to feel upwardly mobile in order to stick around. This is exactly why I quit doing basketball a few years back. It was virtually impossible to move up the food chain in my area and I got sick and tired of working crappy 1A girls games every night. I was able to advance much farther much faster in baseball/softball, and here I am still doing it 16 years later. There has got to be a balance in there somewhere.

I agree with everything except the very last sentence. You should not be accepting lineup changes from assistant coaches. But whoever was at the plate meeting is the head coach for that game.

If you're cutting it that close, then get out of the assignment. You should not be accepting games where you will be showing up that close to game time in the first place. Anything above ZZZZ level rec ball should not have Smitty get out of his car with slacks already on. The only possible exception to this would be if you live literally right next to the ballpark. Even then, you would still be Smitty.

In big boy ball in this area, pitchers are expected to hit their spots. The coaches we deal with do not want strikes called FOR their own pitcher if he misses his spot badly. So around here, if a catcher has to traverse the width of the plate to stick one, BALL.... The coaches in your area are idiots.

Your assigner is an IDIOT, or else you are overexaggerating how fat the pitch was. I would do the opposite of what he says from now on.

Really? I've met A LOT of them.

Does this guy have the last name of "Hitler" with a first initial of "A"? Think I saw a doc about him on the History Channel awhile back. On that note, one of my high school groups that just went to Aribter has an assigner with the bright idea that he's not going to let people accept/decline games, They simply show up on your schedule with the "Accepted on" date showing the day that you log in to check the schedule. This cannot end well and I hope that he ends up with an INFINITE amount of problems from it through the course of the season. I have already told him that there are 3 different dates he has me scheduled for that I'm not going to work for various reasons.

JUCO regional this past weekend, I'm working 3rd and am on the line, hard shot right at the bag hits the 3B just inside the line, my PU voiceiferously and LOUDLY screams "FAIR BALL!" to the shock and surprise of just about everyone. At least he got the call right...

You have absolutely no idea at all that none of the 4 knew the rule. I can almost guarantee that at least one of them did, but either was afraid to speak up and show the rest of the crew up, or else was talked down by the crew chief. Remember how emphatic Culbreath was afterwards about taking responsibility for the mistake? I will bet dollars to doughnuts that someone brought up the correct ruling but was ultimately talked out of it by more senior members of the crew. There have been many experiments in social psychology done on this phenomenon. People will flat-out intentionally blow easy questions in a group setting if other people miss them first. They don't want to be seen as the guy that stands out in the crowd.

Two whole innings? Worked 3rd base for a game at the JUCO Regional recently that went 8 innings and might have had 3 baserunners for both sides, total. Ended with a walk-off HR with 2 outs in the bottom of the 8th. 1-0

Lots of seed fans here. I'll stick with gum and lifesavers.

Never, ever wear your pants to the ballgame. Nothing screams low class, clueless Smitty ump than someone that wears their pants (or hat for that matter) to the ballpark. This should not be that complicated. Wear some type of compression shorts over your undearwear/jock so that you're never more naked than a pair of bike shorts on the bottom. My chest will be bare for about 1.5 seconds as I take my casual shirt off and put my undershirt on. If anyone has a problem with that, STOP PEEPING AT ME WHILE I CHANGE! I think a lot of these complainers are just voyeurs hoping to catch a quick peek at the goods, then feel ashamed afterwards and have to lash out at someone. I believe the psychological term is "TRANSFERENCE."

One of our top D1 umpires around here actually has a 3rd shift job overnight, and will frequently drive right to do a game in the middle of the day. He says he actually likes working games on little or no sleep as it forces him to pay closer attention to what's going on. He's kind of a weirdo, though.

So far I like the Honig's shirts the best. I bought them this spring. Maybe they improved them? The shirt I'm talking about was ordered less than 2 months ago. I agree that the feel and comfort of the shirt is excellent.