renegadewolf

You could also go with a more measured response like "I will be more than happy to give the coaches more slack, just as soon as they start giving me and my partner some"

thank you very much for the attribution.... no they didn't give credit, and I had no idea from where it had come. I'm glad proper people are now getting credit.

Stolen from another websites forum. I kinda geeked out a little on this one Let’s set aside the question of how we got the baseball moving that fast. We'll suppose it's a normal pitch, except in the instant the pitcher releases the ball, it magically accelerates to 0.9c. From that point onward, everything proceeds according to normal physics: The answer turns out to be “a lot of thingsâ€, and they all happen very quickly, and it doesn’t end well for the batter (or the pitcher). I sat down with some physics books, a Nolan Ryan action figure, and a bunch of videotapes of nuclear tests and tried to sort it all out. What follows is my best guess at a nanosecond-by-nanosecond portrait: The ball is going so fast that everything else is practically stationary. Even the molecules in the air are stationary. Air molecules vibrate back and forth at a few hundred miles per hour, but the ball is moving through them at 600 million miles per hour. This means that as far as the ball is concerned, they’re just hanging there, frozen. The ideas of aerodynamics don’t apply here. Normally, air would flow around anything moving through it. But the air molecules in front of this ball don’t have time to be jostled out of the way. The ball smacks into them hard that the atoms in the air molecules actually fuse with the atoms in the ball’s surface. Each collision releases a burst of gamma rays and scattered particles. These gamma rays and debris expand outward in a bubble centered on the pitcher’s mound. They start to tear apart the molecules in the air, ripping the electrons from the nuclei and turning the air in the stadium into an expanding bubble of incandescent plasma. The wall of this bubble approaches the batter at about the speed of light—only slightly ahead of the ball itself. The constant fusion at the front of the ball pushes back on it, slowing it down, as if the ball were a rocket flying tail-first while firing its engines. Unfortunately, the ball is going so fast that even the tremendous force from this ongoing thermonuclear explosion barely slows it down at all. It does, however, start to eat away at the surface, blasting tiny particulate fragments of the ball in all directions. These fragments are going so fast that when they hit air molecules, they trigger two or three more rounds of fusion. After about 70 nanoseconds the ball arrives at home plate. The batter hasn't even seen the pitcher let go of the ball, since the light carrying that information arrives at about the same time the ball does. Collisions with the air have eaten the ball away almost completely, and it is now a bullet-shaped cloud of expanding plasma (mainly carbon, oxygen, hydrogen, and nitrogen) ramming into the air and triggering more fusion as it goes. The shell of x-rays hits the batter first, and a handful of nanoseconds later the debris cloud hits. When it reaches the batter, the center of the cloud is still moving at an appreciable fraction of the speed of light. It hits the bat first, but then the batter, plate, and catcher are all scooped up and carried backward through the backstop as they disintegrate. The shell of x-rays and superheated plasma expands outward and upward, swallowing the backstop, both teams, the stands, and the surrounding neighborhood—all in the first microsecond. Suppose you’re watching from a hilltop outside the city. The first thing you see is a blinding light, far outshining the sun. This gradually fades over the course of a few seconds, and a growing fireball rises into a mushroom cloud. Then, with a great roar, the blast wave arrives, tearing up trees and shredding houses. Everything within roughly a mile of the park is leveled, and a firestorm engulfs the surrounding city. The baseball diamond is now a sizable crater, centered a few hundred feet behind the former location of the backstop. A careful reading of official Major League Baseball Rule 6.08(B) suggests that in this situation, the batter would be considered "hit by pitch", and would be eligible to advance to first base.

Someone once told me "Every baseball player is a liar" and in my experience every fan for the team you made a call against is so bias they can't see a play for what it is. I find myself agreeing with trout (quite often actually) that you have to sell the hell out of the call. The louder the call, the more emphatic the motions. I had a game last evening with 5 or 6 plays on the bags that could have gone either way. Each time I a very loud safe or out call with an exagerated, sharp mechanic. I didn't get a single arguement the whole night. This isn't always the case but I avoid more trouble than I find when I am loud and sure. I find myself getting caught on angles occassionally, I had a game the other night that I was at 90 degrees to the throw from second to first, but the throw was off first baseman had to move towards home to catch the ball and made a swiping tag. Had I been paying attention to the ball a little better I would have seen the ball wasn't true and could have taken a step or two in and I wouldn't have been stuck with a 180 degree line of sight with the runner between me and the tag. I was kind of shocked i got myself into the situation and made a rather unsure call. I did end up asking my partner who said I got the call right but that was somewhat emberassing being a deer in the headlights

This seems to fall into the catagory of "if no one bitches about it, No way am I calling it". Thats a very dirty stick and game ending plays are not the time to demonstate your knowledge of the minutiae of baseball rules.

Called a triple play last year because the offence thought there was an infield fly and the runners on 1st and 2nd and the BR didn't move. The ball was hit in a very low albiet slow arc towards second on the left side looked at my partner he wasn't holding his arm up to signal he was calling for IFF and I didn't have mine up so I absolutely wasn't calling it. SS had to make an amazing dive to even get close to catching the ball but he didn't catch it, so he picked up the ball walked over to second, tagged the runner, touched 2nd and threw the ball to first. Insert SH*# sotrm here

Okay, so after the game winning hit, could he drop the protest? Or does the coach have to stick with it? A protest does not need to be followed through on. When the protest is made, all the Ps and Qs need to be followed and the game will be "played under protest". If the team protesting ends up winning the game there is no point to following through on the protest because if they win the protest the game is replayed from the time the protest is made. Why risk a loss when they already have a win. Also in many leagues and tournaments a protest must be accompanied by a deposit check from the protesting team (this can help deter frivilous protests). If they win the protest they get their money back, if they lose, the association or tournament keeps it.

My girlfriend comes to the vast majority of my games. There was a weekend that she wasn't able to come along a few weeks back. In 3 mens league games i ended up with a massive bruise on the inside of my right thigh from a foul ball, another massive bruise at the top of my arm at the cuff from a foul ball(chest protector has plastic on the shoulders as well as padding) , a nut shot that bounced up from the underside and pushed any protection out of the way leaving me bent over, unable to move for about 3 minutes close to vomiting from the pain. In the third game there was a pitch in the dirt bounced up and curved that hit me behind the ear totally missing my mask and giving me a pretty nasty concussion. I've told her she is no longer allowed to miss any of my games

A couple years ago I had a close play at home during a 16-19y/o game the runner dove in towards home, catcher made a sweeping tag attempt, dirt flew, people started chattering looking for the call, and there was me still standing 3BLX locked in doing nothing. Runner looked at me, catcher looked at me, people in the crowd kind of muttering in confusion, I was standing there looking at the runner and the catcher, this went on for about 10 seconds. I see the light go on in the catchers eyes and he tag the runner at which point I bang him out. No tag was made initially so no out yet, the runner totally missed home plate, and therefor not safe yet. lots to see, but nothing to call yet.

I find that when a base ump gets hit, it is usually pretty obvious by the loud "THUD" and a colorful variety of words that follow. I personally don't see the need for a mechanic when in essence nothing happened. This could potentially be cause for confusion were the ball fielded and a try for a double play were occouring or a fast throw to first especially if an out happend. I say just let it play

July 2, 2012 A vs B OK Playing Field 6th inning Visitor A at bat #10 called out on a close play at first.. He verbally objected to the call a couple of times and then proceeded to throw his helmet over the dug out fences into the park behind the field. At that point I informed #10 that he was ejected from the game.. No further action recomended. That was the report. pretty vanilla, I expect the fact that A was the better team in the standings (9-2 vs 1-9) and B and that team B was in essence a seniors high school team playing in a low tier mens league and that B had taken a 4 run lead the previous inning, was a factor in the outburst. Didn't include any of that in the report, just an observation during the game. I was hoping for an ejection free season, and it was going sooooo well.... *sigh* Maybe next year.... perhaps a "post-concossive" shortened temper had played into this, but I have never tollerated blatant equipment tosses on the field.

The only question you should have asked was "when the team protests and I get my ass raked across the coals for blatant violation of the rules are you going to take the heat on this one"?

Like I said, It's a Canaa thing, we have our eccentricities I suppose..lol

Red undershirt with Navy and Black Black undershirt with Cream Blue undershirt with Powder and Red It's another one of those Canada things

If you are looking to do something different, and you have money to spare, you could go with sand blasting the mask to remove all the old paint and then have it electroplted. get a nice copper, gold, chrome or such finish on it.I think powder coating may be a little more reasonable however., as you could also go with any color you desired

I had a malicious contact ej last year myself, the batter hit a dribbler up between first and the pitchers mound, he was a pretty big kid so he more or less gave up on running right away. The pitcher picked up the ball, charges at the batter and charges at the BR and slams into him lbringing both his arms up in an upward punching motion (line a lineman in football coming up off a three point stance) into the BR side. Generally speaking in a situation like this. I'll make the call for the play (Out), call time, toss the hook. Same for when a coach comes up off the bench, time gets called right away. It can really help avoid additional ejections and or SH*#storms because I am not paying attention to what is happening on the field at that point

Don't do..... always seems to be the answer when someone recalls a horror story from a particular bracket that they experienced. Don't do 7 year olds, don't do 10U, don"t do rec leagues, blah blah blah. Some of us just love baseball, and we just want to call games for people who feel the same way, no matter what their skill level. Not everyone who umpires will get a chance to do Rep, college/university semi-pro, pro or any other elite level of ball, no matter how skilled they are as an umpire. Do what makes you happy, and realize because this is a passionate sport played by passionate people and watched by those who are living vicariously through those on the field, there are going to be some ugly spots along the road. Baseball requires umpires and everyone who plays baseball deserves a good umpire. I'm not above calling a game for kids, though I do prefer to call the highest level of ball I am capable of. I think I'm a good umpire, not a better than someone deserves umpire though

Despite it all, sometimes we just want to see the proverbial idiot driving the car lose and an careen off the road......Its not right perhaps, but we all do it

Those duds are looking pretty sharp in my humble opinion. Hat works much better facing the right way doesn't it?

in all fairness, I was guessing....lol

Next time try putting in the right web address LOL http://theofficialcall.com/ just sayin. Thanks for the recomendation, going to do some window (firefox) shopping

Oddly, in the twice I've ordered from OC I've never had a problem. They charged me canadian funds on thier american prices (there was a fair difference in the dollar value at that point), recieved things within 2 weeks, no boarder fees and exactly as represented on the website.... perhaps I am an exception to the rule. Although I have to agree with the acessment of some of the colors they try to hawk. Chocolate actually doesn't look too bad, a know a few people around here who got them, and please excuse my not being an american and appreciation of american culture and values and blah blah blah, but those flag jerseys... gaudy doesn't even begin to describe that. A complete disgrace to the flag imo, but I digress. Looking for soe new equipment myself I plan on checking out some of the recomendations here as our supplies here in Ontario *cough*honigs*cough* prices are way out of whack with our american counterparts so it's well worth shopping online.

I'm noticing in general the number of ejections I've had has gone down over the years. first year, i must have had 7 ejections and a forfeit, 2nd maybe 4 last year i had 2 and so far, since May I haven't had a single eject. Maybe it's just I'm getting near 40 and I am mellowing, or perhaps I feel I have less to proove to anyone, (I know I most certainly felt like I did in my first year), perhaps I am getting bettter at making the right call, or at least selling the call. Could be all the above, but thankfully my trend is downward

For new umpires, honestly I would suggest just skipping the traditional mask. A catchers style mask just offers up so much more protection to the entire head. I serve a pretty good case in point about keeping your head facing the pitcher not always being enough to save you some grief. A pitch low and wide in the dirt, bounced up, curved in and nailed me directly at the base of the skull behind my ear, totally missing the mask. Had i been wearing a "bucket" i wouldn't be off work for at least 3 weeks, going for a CAT scan, not allowed to drive, not allowed to call any plate games, restricted to a few base games a week, limited physical activity, sensitivity to light, short tempered, constant headaches amungst other things because of a rather severe concussion. I won't be getting behind a plate again without one myself.

If the catcher wants to squeeze me out of seeing everything, then he's not going to get everything, and I will let him know when he complains I missed something. I call what I see, and I do what I can to see it all, but when the catcher wants to take that all away, he's going to find a lot more balls called in those situations. I'm with trout, up and back. Live by the sword, die by the sword