Lawrence_Dorsey

Warren, I've had ankle issues for a long time and the newer shoes (Reeboks and NB's) have helped but I still can't do a DH without my ankles getting really stiff after the game. A friend of mine is an orthopedic PA and he gave me two of the braces below. I wore them religiously for several years and have given them up this year unless I am working a DH. So far I haven't had many problems. They are worth the money...http://www.asoankle.com/ Lawrence

Ump81, I work for Mid-State Umpires (Scott Faglier) and our umpires worked the 2A State Finals last year in Greensboro. As Scott Faglier (who has worked 2 state finals in basketball) always says, "The letter from Chapel Hill says that working a state final is the highest honor in NCHSAA sports" and he is right. Congratulations ! If a crew got a compliment from Mark Dreibelbis, I would definitely repeat what they did to earn the compliment. Mark is very demanding but I think he is quick to praise when the work meets his expectations. Our association has always been well thought of in Chapel Hill and I know other booking agents such as Ron Sebastian (NCAA D-1 and CWS umpire) have praised our guys. I think if you prepare well and your association has sent the right guys, you will be fine. Five County Stadium is a great place. I used to live near there and went to the very first Mudcats game in 1991. It has change dramatically since those days and in fact, I have been back there since the late 90's but have driven by once on my way to Greenville a couple of years ago. Lawrence

I stopped doing travel ball about five years ago. I only worked travel ball early in the spring and in the fall after the summer season was over. I stopped because it just wasn't worth it to me anymore and the guy who ran the tournaments in Concord,NC sent an email out that essentially lambasted the booking agent (who was just OK) and also all of the umpires. Until that point I thought he had our backs and I had been impressed with his actions on a couple of occassions. Here is a list of the problems I saw : 1) Too many coaches and coaches that wanted to stand on the field while their team was on defense. The coaches were mouthy and because they'd paid an entry fee they were expecting Doug Harvey and Harry Wendlestedt (in their respective primes) to call the games. 2) Umpires working too many games. I am not a huge fan of doubleheaders, but I do work them occasionally. However, there were umpires at these tournaments working 3, 4, and 5 games a day. That is way to many games for someone to do the job effectively. No one can convince me that an umpire on game 5 of the day is giving his best. 3) Too many games/not enough quality umpires. This problem has resolved itself since many of the tournaments have dried up and the few that are left are much smaller than in the past. However, given the number of games that needed be covered back when I was working, it was impossible to get "quality" umpires for all games. I saw guys working that were way past their prime and some that had no business on a baseball field but the games had to be covered so these "umpires" worked. Warren you are correct that there are few reprocussions for misbehavior at tournaments. That is why I like HS baseball the best anymore. The kids know that if they get way out of line, not only will they face on-field sanctions, but they may also be in the principal's office in the morning. Legion ball here is still handled pretty well but the kids and coaches don't face anything more than a suspension from the field. Lawrence

I have been following the horrible details of the shooting of four police officers in Oakland CA last weekend. A detail of interest that came out was that one of the officers who was killed was an amateur umpire as well as a police officer. Officer John Hege worked HS games in his area and at his funeral it was mentioned that he also went to umpire school in FL. My prayers go out to his fellow umpires who must continue on without him. I also pray for the other officers involved as well as their families and fellow officers. Lawrence

I do remember Courtland..He always had something off the wall to say. Funny enough, one of the guys down there that year is a legendary umpire here in my neck of the woods, Dirk Swing. I didn't talk to Dirk then, but he and I have worked together several times in HS and Legion since then. He is a good guy and a damn good umpire. His trademark is his plate coat, every plate job whether it's 30F or 100F at game time. Lawrence

I only went to the Cape Fear Classic once, in 2003. If we met, I am sorry to say that I don't remember it. That weekend was a blur. I do remember the MD guys and we had 2 of them in my group for sure. One was a skinny guy named Sammy and the other was a real nervous guy named Bill. That's about all I remember!! Lawrence

I live in Albemarle....

I live near Charlotte and have several umpiring colleagues in that area. Two names that I would suggest are Bill Freeman and Gary Swanson. Bill books HS and some rec baseball in the Charlotte area. His number is (704)554-6239. Gary Swanson is out of the Concord area and he assigns some local leagues in Concord as well as travelling tournament ball in that area. His number is 704-721-0742. There may be other assignors for local leagues in the area but those are the two that I am familiar with. Lawrence