Wally

Thanks guys! I really had no idea and was just trying to bluff my way out of it and had to pull something out of my rear without making any official type statements which could be used against me later.

Due to the record amount of rain so far this year I had a Double Header last night. One of the good 5/5 DH's. In the first game, my partner had the dish. R3 1 out. The batter hits a pop-fly to shallow LF. The runner tags up and the fielder guns the ball in to the catcher who is now waiting for the runner. There is a collision, I may actually classify it as solid contact. My partner gets the out and then tosses R3 for malicious contact. We get a small eruption. Would I have gotten MC ... , ehhh, probably not. There was contact but nothing I would consider malicious, but this isn't the point of my post. Second game, I've now got the dish. We hold our plate conference. The coach of the ejected player says to me as he's handing me his line up, "I've got 23 back in, I'm going to appeal the ejection and so will play him this game, if the ejection is upheld he can sit another game later." The other coach jumps in and says he can't do that. I was completely caught off guard but replied, "This is an administrative issue beyond my authority. Coach ___ if you decide to play him that’s your prerogative. But if you're incorrect in your interpretation of how the state high school league handles this type of situation I believe you may run the risk of having the game declared a forfeit after-the-fact for playing an illegal or ineligible player, but the decision to play him or not is completely yours." He made a few comments but did end up pulling the kid. And they still won the game. How do you think I handled it?

Which ever you use have a few I must own a dozen indicators and know where 3 or 4 are. Between lending them and not getting them back, the kids, breaking them, etc.. you should always make sure you have a few.

... your strike 3 mechanic has 16 steps!

You mean like, coach why don't you come over here so we can discuss balls & strikes. While I've never laid this trap, ohh how I've wanted to...

I was just told today was Chinese New Year and that it will be year of the Rat. I think that means it’s going to be a long one for umpires.;)

About 2 years ago I had a game which was the worse mismatch I've ever been unfortunate to call. This was middle school ball in a private school confrence. The home team is really a baseball powerhouse Their Varsity team has won many state titles, and they have had many guys drafted, and a 2 are in MLB. Their JV team is better than many Varsity teams and their Middle School team is better than a few Varsity teams and most JV teams. The field they play on is absolutely stunning. I've been to Minor League games where the field is not kept as well. I had never even heard of the opposing school. Well the top of the first took maybe 3 min including the pitchers warm ups. So far so good. We get to the bottom of the first, and the first time through the line up the home team actually played and scored 7 or so without getting an out. If the pitch was hitable they crushed it, if it wasn't hitable they took it. I hadn't called a single strike. Lead off batter comes up and rips one in the corner and I'm thinking I've got an in the park HR, but the coach is stopping all their guys at first. We even had a guy hit one that bounced over the OF fence my partner called time and awarded him 2nd, but he stayed at first. The score was probably around 0-15, and this ain't tennis, still with no outs before I called my first strike. The pitch was probably above my head, but I was desperate. After calling the strike I looked at the assistant coach in the dugout (who is the JV head coach) ashamedly. He turns around and hollars at the kids, that he doesn't care if the ball is 10' outside, bounces or is even going to hit them they're swinging. Another run or two scored, but I got my 3 outs. An hour into the game and were starting the 2nd inning. Top went in another 2-3 min. The bottom half the inning and the home team comes out and they are only bunting, even with 2 strikes. Yet they continue to score. I remember the scoreboard was turned off at 0-22. The home team was trying to get out the remainder of the game and couldn't. They just continued to score. I actually for the only time in my career got to call a runner out for passing the preceeding runner. The bases were loaded and the a batter was hit (not swinging) the 3rd base coach held the guy at 3rd and told R2 to advance past 3rd. The game took over 3 hours just to get to the 10RR after 4 1/2 innings. The head coach was very nice about everything when he took us to the concession stand to give us our checks he even gave us another $5 out of the till for our "pain and suffering."

I love situations like this. It can be a welcome relief. I haven't seen anything like this at the JV level but I have in Rec ball. I had a 11 y/o kid (Pony game) hit an easy single, possibly a double into the gap who stayed in the box while the whole world was telling him to run. Well he ran back to the dug out. My partner correctly declared him out when he got there. Just to make sure the pitcher stepped off had F3 touch the base just the same.

What do you think of the McDavid line of Hexpad items? I think the pants seem seem like a good idea, but the padded shirt seem a bit too much. Would you use it? And if you have I'd love to hear about it.

Big Dog, I primarily do HS and I hope to break into college (D-III or JUCO) well before the life of my next CP ends. I currently use an older +POS traditional ribbed protector which I honestly think does a good job, but it is starting to fall apart due to age. Yes, it hurts more when I get hit with it than the guys with the platinum or othe hard shells, but even the worse of the foul balls I'm able to keep going with out delay. But I've never fealt that I was not or under protected, even in summer league games with college kids.

I'm in the market for a new CP. I've been eyeing the Honig's K1 for a long time. I also see ones by Champion and Pro Nine which are far less expensive and look similar to the K1. I have never seen in person either the K1 or the Pro Nine. I recently had the chance to take a close look at the Champion and was impressed with its lightness, but thought is was a bit bulkier than I wanted. They all advertise that the foam is over the hard plastic, opposite to the Platinum & Gold, but are they all that bulky?

You are very correct. However, the pitcher was both on the pitchers plate and his double set was definitely not a quick pitch. Therefore the pitches were not illegal. Baiting... An assistant coach leaving position to involve himself in a discussion, not at all. Assistants are meant to be seen not heard. The Head Coach, when he went from a discussion to a temper tantrum accusing me of being biased, thats a no brainier too. Had he kept it at a discussion level he would have been around.

I find I have to deal with this or my partners have to deal with this with lower level coaches. There are a couple of things I've done that help me they are to 1. Call more strikes and 2. Inform or remind coaches it is against the rules to argue balls and strikes. Sent from my SM-N910T using Tapatalk

After the huge wait about this report, what a disappointment. They only hit the tip of the iceberg. With a few notable exceptions (Clemons, Pettit, Roberts...) they decided to focus on career journeymen. Where are the others who you know were on the juice. I laughed when I saw the list and Sammy Sosa wasn't there. This was supposed to be a thurogh and indepth report. No disrespect but who cares about Gary Bennett Jr. I did not even know the man existed until the report. Speaks alot about his 12 year career. I want steroids out of baseball, so don't give me a list of has-beens and never-will-be's.