What do you do to get ready for your game?

[yawetag]

 

The one thing I do that no one has mentioned is research the teams the night before. Get the names of the head coach AND assistant coaches for both teams and write them down. Find out how each team is doing for the year (if it's early in the year, check last year's standings). If it's later in the year, look for games between the two teams earlier in the year.

 

All this can usually be found online, at the school's website.

 

 Without trying to sound rude, May I ask why you want to know the assistant coach's name(s) ?

 

 

Why not?

[Pete Peterson Sr]

 

 

The one thing I do that no one has mentioned is research the teams the night before. Get the names of the head coach AND assistant coaches for both teams and write them down. Find out how each team is doing for the year (if it's early in the year, check last year's standings). If it's later in the year, look for games between the two teams earlier in the year.

 

All this can usually be found online, at the school's website.

 

 Without trying to sound rude, May I ask why you want to know the assistant coach's name(s) ?

 

 

Why not?

 

 

Why not for me would be because they have no meaning to me, up until the HC were to be ejected. I do not need to know their names, because other than a courtesy "hello", I do not plan on having any discussion with them. I am cordial, I will greet them, and if they ask a question in the proper manner, I will answer it graciously. But I do not need to know their names, as I do the head coach's, to manage the game.

[BigUmpire]

 

 

 

The one thing I do that no one has mentioned is research the teams the night before. Get the names of the head coach AND assistant coaches for both teams and write them down. Find out how each team is doing for the year (if it's early in the year, check last year's standings). If it's later in the year, look for games between the two teams earlier in the year.

 

All this can usually be found online, at the school's website.

 

 Without trying to sound rude, May I ask why you want to know the assistant coach's name(s) ?

 

 

Why not?

 

 

Why not for me would be because they have no meaning to me, up until the HC were to be ejected. I do not need to know their names, because other than a courtesy "hello", I do not plan on having any discussion with them. I am cordial, I will greet them, and if they ask a question in the proper manner, I will answer it graciously. But I do not need to know their names, as I do the head coach's, to manage the game.

 

Umpire bumper sticker:

• “When the assistant coach comes out you say: "I'll talk to Batman, but I won't talk to Robin"-johhnyg08

[Kevin Finnerty]

Lots of great stuff! The navigating, studying, chilling out, memorizing coaches' names (head coaches only) and a lot of the other stuff mentioned are things I relate to at varying degrees. I also have a nutrition routine that involves a good breakfast, pre-game consumption of homemade whole fruit smoothies (or Jamba Juice if I'm on the run) with lots of protein and nutrients. Before each game, I also have lots of water and a little Gatorade, and I snack on fruit or energy bars before games and yogurt-covered cranberries during breaks in games. Power Bar also has these chewy snack size energy nuggets that are very cool to sneak during a game. (You shouldn't just replace fluids during games, you should also have nutrients.)   

 

I am over-prepared for umpiring in many ways that seem excessive to some, but if you are left without something in umpiring, it is often a high-profile problem. Umpires undergo close scrutiny. I'm far from OCD. I am not that well-prepared for low-profile stuff in life, where a failure gets little notice, but I am over-prepared in umpiring. 

 

That being said, in my immaculate car at all times, I have a pair of plate shoes, base shoes, mask, cup, belt, cap(s), umpire shirt and windbreaker, indicator, brush... everything I could need that could get left out of the bag. It all takes up very little space next to my Finnerty Supply Bucket (FSB), which contains everything else I could possibly need.

 

I have three of these hangers that have several bars on them. On each of the three of them, I have a set of poly-wools: a pair of plate slacks with a belt and ball bags, and a pair of base slacks with a belt. I almost always have a set in the car and two in the closet. So if I have a pair of slacks on a hanger, it has a belt with it. And if it's a pair of plate slacks, it has ball bags also. I have eight belts and six ball bags. I got a great deal on those belts and bought a half a dozen extra. So I will never be without a belt ever again. I forgot my belt once and it was a high-profile problem. Never again. I forgot my ball bags once, and it was with the wrong partner, who raked me for it. Never again. A partner forgot his plate shoes once, and I learned from that and developed that system without having to f - - - up myself.  

 

But the main thing that I do to prepare for every game is arrive exceptionally early: at least 90 minutes, usually more---especially if it's a big game or it's at a nice ballpark. If it's a long distance from my house, I allow even more of a buffer. (You can have a game in greater L.A. that's 50 miles away, and if it's in  the wrong direction, it can take two and a half hours to get there.) Sometimes I go hours early and set up a little table and chair and laptop and do my regular work while I'm soaking up the setting. 

 

And another thing that hasn't been mentioned: checking in. I virtually always check in when I get there for tournaments and high school on up. It's always short and sweet. Sometimes it's just a long-distance wave. There are a host of reasons for this, but I learned the easy way by doing this routinely, that if they know you're there well in advance, and you and your partner walk onto the field a little late and frazzled, they also know that HE'S the one that was late and not you. 

[Jglopez7]

Take a big dump!

[MidAmUmp]

The one thing I do that no one has mentioned is research the teams the night before. Get the names of the head coach AND assistant coaches for both teams and write them down. Find out how each team is doing for the year (if it's early in the year, check last year's standings). If it's later in the year, look for games between the two teams earlier in the year.

All this can usually be found online, at the school's website.

Without trying to sound rude, May I ask why you want to know the assistant coach's name(s) ?Because the instructors at the Mid-American Umpire Clinic told him to.

Seriously...Because I may need his help sometime during the game -- control his dugout, a loose ball, etc. Thinking an assistant is non-existent or a human stoplight is old school. Treat them fairly and with some respect. Besides...they might be a head coach someday and they're going to remember how you treated them when they were directing traffic.

Having said that, he gets no leway with me. If he runs his mouth then the plesantries stop and I will put him in his place.

[Pete Peterson Sr]

 

 

The one thing I do that no one has mentioned is research the teams the night before. Get the names of the head coach AND assistant coaches for both teams and write them down. Find out how each team is doing for the year (if it's early in the year, check last year's standings). If it's later in the year, look for games between the two teams earlier in the year.

All this can usually be found online, at the school's website.

Without trying to sound rude, May I ask why you want to know the assistant coach's name(s) ? Because the instructors at the Mid-American Umpire Clinic told him to.

Seriously...Because I may need his help sometime during the game -- control his dugout, a loose ball, etc. Thinking an assistant is non-existent or a human stoplight is old school. Treat them fairly and with some respect. Besides...they might be a head coach someday and they're going to remember how you treated them when they were directing traffic.

Having said that, he gets no leway with me. If he runs his mouth then the plesantries stop and I will put him in his place.

 

In no way do I treat assistants rudely, or as if they are somehow "sub-human". I respect everyone on the field, until given a reason to do otherwise. I have just never seen the value in getting snuggly with an assistant coach. If I need his help, and I do at times, I will address him as coach.

[mjr_2013]

Why "Teams, their records"?

 

 

 

I want to know what to expect… If this is a crosstown rivalry, I know there may be bad blood. Same with if this is the two undefeated teams in the league. They'll be bringing their A-game, I'll make sure to bring mine… OTOH, if I see I have the undefeated playing the winless, I know that I may have a game that could get out of hand. If it does, I'll be prepared to keep it under control.

[yawetag]

If this is a crosstown rivalry, I know there may be bad blood.

 

And definitely if the last game was a blow-out.

[BigUmpire]

Umpire bumper sticker:

• "If you go looking for trouble, you will find it"- BigUmpire

[mjr_2013]

Not necessarily "looking" for trouble, but being aware that there may be trouble is good game management. You don't want to be blindsided by an altercation.

 

-mjr_2013

[catcher]

Lots of great stuff! The navigating, studying, chilling out, memorizing coaches' names (head coaches only) and a lot of the other stuff mentioned are things I relate to at varying degrees. I also have a nutrition routine that involves a good breakfast, pre-game consumption of homemade whole fruit smoothies (or Jamba Juice if I'm on the run) with lots of protein and nutrients. Before each game, I also have lots of water and a little Gatorade, and I snack on fruit or energy bars before games and yogurt-covered cranberries during breaks in games. Power Bar also has these chewy snack size energy nuggets that are very cool to sneak during a game. (You shouldn't just replace fluids during games, you should also have nutrients.)   

 

I am over-prepared for umpiring in many ways that seem excessive to some, but if you are left without something in umpiring, it is often a high-profile problem. Umpires undergo close scrutiny. I'm far from OCD. I am not that well-prepared for low-profile stuff in life, where a failure gets little notice, but I am over-prepared in umpiring. 

 

That being said, in my immaculate car at all times, I have a pair of plate shoes, base shoes, mask, cup, belt, cap(s), umpire shirt and windbreaker, indicator, brush... everything I could need that could get left out of the bag. It all takes up very little space next to my Finnerty Supply Bucket (FSB), which contains everything else I could possibly need.

 

I have three of these hangers that have several bars on them. On each of the three of them, I have a set of poly-wools: a pair of plate slacks with a belt and ball bags, and a pair of base slacks with a belt. I almost always have a set in the car and two in the closet. So if I have a pair of slacks on a hanger, it has a belt with it. And if it's a pair of plate slacks, it has ball bags also. I have eight belts and six ball bags. I got a great deal on those belts and bought a half a dozen extra. So I will never be without a belt ever again. I forgot my belt once and it was a high-profile problem. Never again. I forgot my ball bags once, and it was with the wrong partner, who raked me for it. Never again. A partner forgot his plate shoes once, and I learned from that and developed that system without having to f - - - up myself.  

 

But the main thing that I do to prepare for every game is arrive exceptionally early: at least 90 minutes, usually more---especially if it's a big game or it's at a nice ballpark. If it's a long distance from my house, I allow even more of a buffer. (You can have a game in greater L.A. that's 50 miles away, and if it's in  the wrong direction, it can take two and a half hours to get there.) Sometimes I go hours early and set up a little table and chair and laptop and do my regular work while I'm soaking up the setting. 

 

And another thing that hasn't been mentioned: checking in. I virtually always check in when I get there for tournaments and high school on up. It's always short and sweet. Sometimes it's just a long-distance wave. There are a host of reasons for this, but I learned the easy way by doing this routinely, that if they know you're there well in advance, and you and your partner walk onto the field a little late and frazzled, they also know that HE'S the one that was late and not you. 

Sounds like you have a story worth telling

[JaxRolo]

When you get assigned a game you already should know what to expect. Should already know if the teams are good or bad or a rivalry.

[yawetag]

When you get assigned a game you already should know what to expect. Should already know if the teams are good or bad or a rivalry.

 

Things change through the year, though. The perennial powerhouse may be having a bad year, while the "always last" may have gotten a strong pitcher. Also, rivalries can change, albeit over several years.

[blue23ll]

All that is very good information for the fans. From an umpires perspective, it really should have no bearing on how we work our games. I know what teams will have good pitching and which teams won't, but that doesn't change how I approach my work.  I don't anticipate that because one of my fellow umpires had issues with a particular team that I will. Each game is a new experience.

[alex7]

All that is very good information for the fans. From an umpires perspective, it really should have no bearing on how we work our games. I know what teams will have good pitching and which teams won't, but that doesn't change how I approach my work.  I don't anticipate that because one of my fellow umpires had issues with a particular team that I will. Each game is a new experience.

 

Personally, the only time that I've seen that type of info useful is in the summer college leagues where teams are playing a 3-game series and for whatever reason I didn't work the first game.  Then yes, absolutely, I want the info on what's transpired so far between the teams.  Like you, I'd be concerned that if I thought one team wasn't very good, my strike zone might expand a little.  Same reason I try not to open it up too much when a good team is beating a bad team late in the game.  Never know when that 5-run comeback inning will creep up, and I don't want to feel I short-changed either team assuming the game was "over" or one team wasn't good enough to make a game out of it.

[BalkHawk]

Caffeine like a mo'fugga.

When I down an Amp Focus in the hour before a plate game, I get heart flutters but I don't lose the count.

[Rulekeep]

Caffeine like a mo'fugga.

When I down an Amp Focus in the hour before a plate game, I get heart flutters but I don't lose the count.

Watch it, Warren's going to spring that dehydration article on you, too.

[BigUmpire]

 

Caffeine like a mo'fugga.

When I down an Amp Focus in the hour before a plate game, I get heart flutters but I don't lose the count.

Watch it, Warren's going to spring that dehydration article on you, too.

 

Warren is correct on dehydration. Been there and watched 1 guy, not an umpire, die over this. Serious crap.

[conbo61]

I take a look at the records of the two teams, how they have done recently and if they had played previously that season.  I also verify my partner as well as call the home coach to make sure that there was not a last minute field change.

 

On the way over I listen to music and go over scenarios.  Most importantly, I try to put anything that may have happened at work or home OUT of my head. For the next few hours it is JUST the game in front of me. I find that I an very relaxed on the field. Not complacent, but at ease.  

[MidAmUmp]

All that is very good information for the fans. From an umpires perspective, it really should have no bearing on how we work our games. I know what teams will have good pitching and which teams won't, but that doesn't change how I approach my work. I don't anticipate that because one of my fellow umpires had issues with a particular team that I will. Each game is a new experience.

I don't really want to know about problems between a fellow umpire and a team I will have. But I'd damn well better know if the two teams have had issues with each other.

As with a lot of things this depends on what level you work. The higher the level, the more serious the game is really taken. I'm not saying local youth games aren't important because they are, but at the higher levels jobs and livelihoods are at stake. Tensions can get very high and emotions tend to take over. Retaliation, grudges, etc. are much more likely to happen.

So yes, I want to know the history between teams. I want to know the names (or nickname) of the coaches because I very well may need them to take care of an issue before it gets out of control. It is much more effective to say "Paul, can you take care of..." vs. "hey coach..."

I also want to know how they play...small ball, power hitters, good pitching, etc.

Every team has a game plan going into a game. We're no different. We're a team and we need a game plan which consists of the things we know about each team. Even things like - this team has been swept the last 2 weekends, they're going to be wound tight. This team needs to win x games this weekend to clinch a playoff spot, they're going to be fired up. This team has been eliminated from the playoffs, they might act stupid.

If you don't spend 5-10 minutes of your pregame discussing who's playing and what we know about them, you're not fully prepared to work the game/series.

[blue23ll]

Mid-Am, I've done this for a little while, and at a fairly high level, so I don't want to minimize all that you just said. However, the most important part of your whole statement, to me, would be the last sentence.

 

"If you don't spend 5-10 minutes of your pregame discussing who's playing and what we know about them, you're not fully prepared to work the game/series."

 

I have looked at records, pitching statistics, hitting reports between two teams, one team a play-off bound prior state championship team, and the other team, a perennial cellar dweller, who had been run ruled in their last 5 games. I anticipated a really quick run rule end to this game.  Final score of that game was 1-0, 3 hits between both teams, 1:35 game time, with the state champ pulling out the victory in the bottom of the 7th on a sac fly. To say that I was expecting this would be a lie.

[JaxRolo]

I agree. I have gone to many games expecting a blowout by one team then the other team wins. You never know.

[BigUmpire]

Mid-Am, I've done this for a little while, and at a fairly high level, so I don't want to minimize all that you just said. However, the most important part of your whole statement, to me, would be the last sentence.

 

"If you don't spend 5-10 minutes of your pregame discussing who's playing and what we know about them, you're not fully prepared to work the game/series."

 

I have looked at records, pitching statistics, hitting reports between two teams, one team a play-off bound prior state championship team, and the other team, a perennial cellar dweller, who had been run ruled in their last 5 games. I anticipated a really quick run rule end to this game.  Final score of that game was 1-0, 3 hits between both teams, 1:35 game time, with the state champ pulling out the victory in the bottom of the 7th on a sac fly. To say that I was expecting this would be a lie.

So much for your theory.

[yawetag]

@blue23ll, you're acting like our 5-10 minutes of preparation is akin to writing a dissertation on the history of sporting. Does my research on their records indicate who will win the game? Of course not. Does knowing the teams' pitching tendencies change my zone at the plate? Definitely not. Does a coach's history toward other umpires change the way I handle him? Not at all.

 

However, does knowing there was past bad blood mean I'm a little quicker at moving from the behind the catcher on a HBP? Yep. Does it mean I'll watch tags and other close plays a bit more judiciously for "extra" contact? Definitely. Will I be a bit more ready for "discussions" from the coach on a close call? Most likely. If I can take care of the small things early, then it's less likely they'll turn into big things later. Of course, this doesn't mean I'm not taking care of them in other games, but that I'm more ready for them in this game.

 

Carl Childress says this about anticipation of plays, which I think transitions well for what @MidAmUmp and I are talking about (from 151 Ways to Ruin a Baseball Game, #73 - Anticipate the result of the play [pp 122-4]): Most clinicians believe candidate umpires have been warned so often against anticipation, they can't separate "expectation of an act" from "prediction of its outcome." Keeping them separate is where the art of umpiring comes in.