apperance

[guyinaredhat]

hey guys quick question i was thinking about and having been discussing with a few of my friends back home,

i know the fashion police are always out in full forice, and umpires usually are the best critics of other umpires aperances, but i wanted to see what the general opinion is about umpires with facial hair.

i will be checking into pro school tommorow , i will be going for a job. whats the opinion on facial hair? I wear my hair short and conservative but i have worn a well manicured goatee for as long as i've been able to grow one. i think tommorow i will show up clean shaven and keep that appearance for 5 weeks. but i just wanted to see what the opinion is on facial hair.

[Haid D' Salaami]

In Professional baseball you cant wear facial hair.. so shave.. look like you want to be a professional.

[guyinaredhat]

that's all i needed to hear, thanks! *firing up the electric razor now...

[yawetag]

In Professional baseball you cant wear facial hair.. so shave.. look like you want to be a professional.

I hope Jim Joyce doesn't read this. :)

[hckyosgood30]

electric razors are good, but I'd still go buy an old fashion one, or stop by a barber and get a good straight razor shave. Clean is all they want. Otherwise they'll shave it for you.

[SAB_UIC_TX]

No facial hair in the minors, that changes at the pro level.

[SAB_UIC_TX]

Here's another appearance question; how are you dressed when you arrive at the site in a high school or higher game.

[Triguy29]

I am always dressed when I get to the game. I may have to take my shirt off to put my CP on but I always arrive looking ready.

[mstaylor]

HS most show up in decent clothes but change at the game site. I usually wear my pants and base shoes and dress the rest of the way when I get there. College wants you in sports coat and change at the site.

[rodatc]

No facial hair in the minors, that changes at the pro level.

No facial hair in the minors, that changes in MLB. MiLB is pro.

[johnnyg08]

hey guys quick question i was thinking about and having been discussing with a few of my friends back home,

i know the fashion police are always out in full forice, and umpires usually are the best critics of other umpires aperances, but i wanted to see what the general opinion is about umpires with facial hair.

i will be checking into pro school tommorow , i will be going for a job. whats the opinion on facial hair? I wear my hair short and conservative but i have worn a well manicured goatee for as long as i've been able to grow one. i think tommorow i will show up clean shaven and keep that appearance for 5 weeks. but i just wanted to see what the opinion is on facial hair.

Good idea and don't ask the instructors about it...just shave. Think of it as a 5 week job interview. If you're not going to try and get into PBUC, then I suppose you can do as you wish or as you're asked to do when you start class tomorrow.

[Haid D' Salaami]

Here's another appearance question; how are you dressed when you arrive at the site in a high school or higher game.

I know when I show up at a HS game.. its shorts... but when I work college ... always...always slacks and a Polo/golf shirt.

[Haid D' Salaami]

I am always dressed when I get to the game. I may have to take my shirt off to put my CP on but I always arrive looking ready.

just a tid bit.. don't drive in your umpire pants.. it will wrinkle them. You can buy a thing like the Officials locker room and change at the site.

[Guest]

When I'm working at a site where there's no change room and I have to change at my vehicle, I walk out the door in whatever I happen to be wearing that day. I'm parking in a secluded area a reasonable distance from the field and not straying too far from my "locker room on wheels" so I'm not really concerned with what I'm wearing. Unless the weather's cold, it's always a full change - out of street clothes, into the uniform, and out of the uniform right after the game. If it's cold, I'll put on whatever I'm wearing under my uniform, sans plate equipment, throw on a pair of track pants and a loose cut coat, and head for the yard. I only drive home in my uniform when inclement weather makes changing inconvenient AKA when you get poured on and rained out. Those pants and shirt go right in the laundry when I get home to ensure they're wrinkle free next time I go to use them.

One of the things I like so much about the PBUC UM is how the first two chapters are completely unrelated to rules, instead focusing on how to "be" the part on and off the field, stressing equal importance. Those pages have been so invaluable - there's no portion of our education here that teaches how to stand during the anthem during an anthem game. No one suggests when you're working a change room game that you should be dressed appropriately. And it reflects poorly. We have one league up here that takes itself pretty seriously. I've seen some umpires, but I haven't met everyone in the province to know how wide-ranging this is, show up to these games wearing things like sandals, cut jean shorts, pro baseball jerseys, and caps. It just doesn't look good. And while this league may be the highest profile one, there are many other games outside of this league played at parks or even stadiums with changerooms where fans are roaming the park before and after the game when you're arriving / leaving and you're interacting with club personnel before the game.

The rule I try to follow is dress according to the stage you're on. Friends of mine ran into Jim Reynolds before a season game last year at Comerica. He was wearing clean light wash jeans with a polo shirt. But remember in the World Series a few years ago where Nelson and Davis held a press conference after the HR review when the ball hit the OF camera? They were both wearing a suit with ties.

Sometimes my partners make fun of me for the way I show up, even when it's a "big" game. But I'd rather endure the heckling from them and stand out as polished before I even go on the field as opposed to looking like a slob just to fit in.

[Kevin Finnerty]

I am always dressed when I get to the game. I may have to take my shirt off to put my CP on but I always arrive looking ready.

just a tid bit.. don't drive in your umpire pants.. it will wrinkle them. You can buy a thing like the Officials locker room and change at the site.

Plus one ... Umpires never sit down (or at least they're never supposed to); so to have slacks wrinkled from sitting in them while driving is not a preferred look.

And most of us believe that it's not the preferred look to get out of your car in uniform. The farthest I'll go is to stop and use a restaurant or grocery store restroom to put on my tights and braces and other undergarments, and then change into my full uniform upon arrival at the site. If it's a site that I know provides either semi-secluded parking or a restroom or other changing quarters, I'll bypass the restaurant step. But coming to a game in full uniform is something you should do only in an emergency (going from one site to the next with no time to change).

[johnnyg08]

The farthest I'll go is to stop and use a restaurant or grocery store restroom to put on my tights and braces and other undergarments, and then change into my full uniform upon arrival at the site.

This is what I do if I have time. I don't do it all the time, but if I know there's going to be a lot of people walking by me, I will stop at a gas station and change in their bathroom, my compression undies, long tights, and jock.

Then I show up at the field wearing whatever I was wearing before.

[spiritump]

when ever possible--- arrive and leave the game in the same type of pants and shirt you would wear to play golf in a country club--I say when ever possible that is only one part--NEVER NEVER NEVER showup in uniform.

[dumbdumb]

Here is a July 1, 2009 picture of Brett Houseman (HP) and Nick Lentz getting ready to work in Aberdeen of the NYP League. You can see how they look for hair length and facial hair. This would probably be the way one should look for the school, concerning the hair issue. Both worked this past year in the FSL

Other than finding this picture, I also checked at all 3 schools and there were plenty of pictures of the staff and the students. I think those pictures tell the story. Only JE who does not need a job and maybe someone with a 5 o'clock shadow were as rough as it gets.

And passing on a story from someone I met who went to the school years ago. Don't volunteer to go get the key to the bullpen.

[yawetag]

Last year, I began wearing my underclothes (tights and t-shirt) under business casual clothes. When I arrived (usually several minutes before my partner), I would walk to the field and introduce myself to the managers of both teams. I told them my partner's name and, barring any exceptions, who would be the plate umpire. I felt it added a level of professionalism to my job and eased the coaches' worries that umpires may not show.

I learned this trick at the Mid-American Umpire Clinic. It was mentioned that the above was expected at the college level, so I saw no reason to include it in my high school ritual either. Before the game, I'd try to find the names of the managers and use them when I first approached: "Hi, Scott. I'm Andrew Senger, one of your umpires for the game today. My partner, Joe Smith, should be arriving shortly and, unless there's an emergency, he'll be your plate umpire. Please make sure your teams gets their bats and helmets ready for inspection; we should be here between 10 and 15 minutes before the start time."

[Kevin Finnerty]

Part of my being at least 90 minutes early for virtually every game is leaving enough time to check in with the home coach while still in my golfing attire, as was just described by Spirit Ump. Some of them look surprised that anybody's that professional about a high school game or a Connie Mack game, or a college scrimmage, which is most of what I do. (I don't do this at men's league games, unless it's a playoff game.) I think checking in sets a tone that carries over and leads to an enhanced respectability of the crew. If my partner's as early as me, we both do it. If I don't know the head coaches' names, I go up to the schools' web sites and note their names, so that I can greet them by name at check-in, and the plate meeting.

Now for the added benefit of checking in: Many times, as a result of my checking in with the coach, he scrambles to get us at the very least a place to change, and sometimes an actual locker room facility.

It's not a protocol that's limited to college and above. It has its place in the high school and summer league settings.

[Triguy29]

Wow I thought that I was being professional by shoiwng up ready. Thanks for the advice especially about checking in before getting dressed.

[th3]

i may be (i guess i am) in the minority, but i find it creepy to see a middle aged man (being generous there) stripping down to what looks like underwear on a public street or in a school parking lot...i wear my pants to the game

[hckyosgood30]

th3... Your not alone in your concern of seeing guys "strip" in the parking lot. I like many of the other members on here have stated get to game site 90 min before hand. I wear my undergarments on under my clothes from work. Go introduce myself then come back and tell my partner we're all square. Then I get in my "officials locker room" http://www.theofficialslockerroom.com/ and put on my pants. No one can see me and it takes the some total of a minute. Now there are guys who will show up in their skivies and have a whole pregame that way. Those are the guys I don't take seriously. Or the guys who don't have their uniform pressed or folded and ready to go. Control what you can control. And one of those things is your apperance and professionalism. There is nothing worse then me being ready to go looking good waiting for a partner to show up who looks like crap. Then having them strip and have security or a teacher walk by. So now WE are late, have a minimal pregame, look like crap, and the AD is going to get a phone call. Not a good way to start a game. I say we because if one is bad in a crew all are bad in a crew.

[yawetag]

i may be (i guess i am) in the minority, but i find it creepy to see a middle aged man (being generous there) stripping down to what looks like underwear on a public street or in a school parking lot...i wear my pants to the game

When I arrive, I have three layers under my dress pants: underwear (usually boxer-briefs), jock, and compression tights (http://www.gerrydavis.com/mm5/product/B27MD2911). When I take my pants off, I'm essentially in nothing less than a biker riding down the street (and usually a lot more than a cheerleader) would wear. The most "exposed" I become is when I take my shirt off to put on my t-shirt and umpire shirt.

[th3]

you take your shirt off??!

I'm kidding a little, but i wouldn't take my shirt off either - especially with my body!! Did anyone see the photos of steven tyler that were circulating on facebook today, by the way. Worth googling