What's YOUR gauge on YOUR performance?

[Thunderheads]

I've been thinking .......

 

What's your mechanism for rating your own performance?  Forget about what your partner says, but what do you do to say to yourself:  "good game, or not so good game?"

 

Do you need any affirmation from anyone else on the field? Players? Coaches?  i.e.; 'nice game blue, thanks' ...something like that?

 

Of course we all know when people don't like us, ....but ...... does that mean you didn't do well?  Of course not, but, how does that effect the way you look at your performance?  It shouldn't, but ...does it?  Even though I have pretty thick skin, ...and even though I know I'm NEVER going to make everyone happy out there (it's impossible and I know it) ...........I still go out there w/ that attitude that I'm going to try!  Stupid and misdirected as it may seem .... that's my nature!  And ...it drives me NUTS!  I wish I were different in that regard!

 

Back to it .... just as a curiosity/discussion type thread ........

 

What's YOUR gauge on YOUR performance?

[zoops]

I think most can pretty well just feel how they've done.  We can tell if we missed a pitch or a banger on the bases.  The things I usually regret most are when I didn't get in great position for a tag or if I didn't handle a coach as well as I would like.  I don't put much stock in what the teams say, the winning team will usually say nice job of course.  It's unfortunate when a call makes one team upset but that is part of the game and one of the most satisfying feelings for me as an umpire is when I know I nailed it even though one team may hate you for it.  

[GreyhoundAggie]

I'm my own worst critic for sure. If I am working with a partner I know and respect I will for sure take their opinion into account.

 

But no one is harder on me for missing pitches, or knowing that I blew a rule or didn't handle game management as well as I could have than me.

 

Most good umpires know when they had a bad game or good game and need nothing more than knowing that for themselves.

[JaxRolo]

Every time after I had to make a call. I analyze it. And try to think if I could have done anything different to make it perfect.

 

 

99.99% of the time I am already perfect.

 

But I always do learn from the other .01%

 

   

[umpire_scott]

I don't ever judge a bad game based on coach, fan, player reaction or comments.  Too many particulars in the game determine that.  The consistency of my strike zone can be significantly impacted by the quality of the pitcher and catcher. It can also be more difficult to be consistent depending on the command of the pitcher and types of pitches.  On the bases I could have a game where I was barley noticed, no bangers all day.  Does that mean I had a good game?  Another game could be filled with bangers, which will get the ire of one side.  Does that mean I had a bad game?  Of course not.  When I judge that I had a bad game it is almost entirely based on my reaction to fires.  How do I react to situations?  

 

As for judging a good game I do take a lot of stock in what coaches say when they compliment me.  My favorite comments to hear are:  "He's called it there all day", or really any judgement of my strike zone that indicates they know where I'm calling it.  If they say he's calling that outside pitch a strike, then I've done my job.  The worst comment of course is "We don't know what is a strike".

[refump10]

I don't take a lot of stock in comments from the teams or fans; sure it's nice to hear "nice job" or "good game", but I don't necessarily believe it if they are screaming at me, so I don't necessarily believe it when they tell me nice job.  I had a HS Varsity game this Spring between two really good teams and I heard a lot of negative comments from the crowd.  I felt like it was one of my more solid games of the year; I was consistent and felt like I didn't miss a pitch.  My timing was spot-on and I tracked each pitch extremely well.

 

If I've had an off game behind the plate, I generally feel it.  Usually, it's either I'm a little quick or not tracking the ball well for some reason. I'll battle it all game long; but sometimes it just seems that every pitch is tough and for me it comes down to a "uncomfortable" feeling back there. 

 

If I'm working with a partner I trust and/or value their opinion, I'll ask for feedback. 

 

On the bases, it's a little different. I evaluate whether I got into the proper position to see each play and used good timing to make the call. I had a game last weekend where I had four wackers in the first three innings.  I felt really sure about each of them except the last one.  IR would have been needed to determine whether I got it right or not, so I didn't beat myself up too bad.

 

If I blow a rule, I sulk about it for a week. 

[ricka56]

Responsibility opportunities that can be counted/evaluated:

1. the number of known good/bad calls on bangers (or not so banger of a play);

2. the number of times I came up too quick to make a call (bad timing);

3. the number of times that I "spaced out" while F1 was engaged with the rubber;

4. the number of times I failed to get to the best position;

5. the number of times that I was oblivious that F2 was at bat; 

6. the number of times that I was surprised by something (not prepared);

7. the number of times that I failed/forgot to lock-in properly on the dish;

 

I'm sure I'm missing items. Only #1 is an item that others see. There are times when others have said that I had a good game, when I know better.

[Jeff C.]

Jeff we must be very similar in nature.  I too arrive on the field with the attitude of trying to please everyone, which ain't never going to happen of course.  I do pretty much what Ricka does.  I also ignore the "good game blue" comments even if they are well meaning.  Because that same fan or parent next week could say that I was the worst umpire ever.  Trust me, the fans, coaches & players can never be as hard on me as I am on myself. 

[noumpere]

If you believe them when they say "good game" then you have to believe them when they say "you suck."

[GoodOldGus]

I did a Varsity game between two conference rivals battling for a conference championship.  It was on "live radio" which is a big deal for some smaller schools and conferences.  Game went pretty well.  The losing team didn't like some of my strike calls in the late innings, but that had more to do with the score than the actual pitches.  While walking to our vehicle after the game, we got a "horrible game blue" from the losing fans and about 20 steps later we got a "great game blue" from winning fans.  I'll never forget it for the rest of my umpiring career.  It really puts things in perspective when it comes to fan comments etc. 

 

I can get a pretty good "feel" about each game.   How was the flow? How did I(we) handle any close plays or issues?  How often did the coaches have to come onto the field etc. 

[umpire_scott]

If you believe them when they say "good game" then you have to believe them when they say "you suck."

 

Good game is an arbitrary thing that is said out of politeness.  I get "good game" comments all the time and they mean nothing to me.  But specific comments like "you had a great consistent zone tonight", or even "hey great game I appreciate it" does go a long way.  Coaches and fans are way more irrational about plays that go against them than plays that go for them.

[maineump]

A lot of my self eval comes back to the overall flow of the game if I am doing the plate.

I actually asked a partner the other night if my strike zone was off from normal or if the pitching was bad. He said zone was good, pitching was off - I just felt odd calling so many balls.

Doing the bases I evaluate my positioning and ability to get to a position to make calls. If I feel something is off, then I work on it the next game.

 

We all have some different 'styles', we need to be our own critics and need to be HONEST about it. A good senior partner can be a great help, if you can't figure it out on your own.

[Pete Peterson Sr]

Those of us who have been around a while know what type of game we've had. When I walk off of the field, I know. I will run particular pitches, or plays through my head immediately after the game, whether I know I had a good or bad game. Honest analysis of your games is key to continuing to improve, rather than hitting a plateau and being happy with it.

[Jocko]

Like others, I believe most of us KNOW when we had a horseSH*# game. It's the ones that DON'T that will never get any better.

[bluejerred]

- Did I hustle pre-game?  Clean uniform, proper nutrition and hydration, good pre-game, pre-game rules/mechanics study

- Did I hustle during the game? ^^^See @ricka56 list above and game management

- Did I hustle post game?  Good post-game with partners and post-rule/mechanics study on anything I feel I missed

 

If I hustled and put 100% effort into my game then I walk off the field head held high.  If I made mistakes, I study and learn from them.  Other than that, I give no attention to anyone other than other umpires, mentors, and myself about my performance.

[grayhawk]

I judge it by how many GLM phone numbers I get after the game.  

[MidAmUmp]

I don't put a lot of stock in the good game comments.  One will always stick out though, I had a game about 5 years ago with the University of Kansas.  They got beat bad...15-5 or something like that.  As we were walking off the field, Rich Price (in the top 5 classiest D-I coaches) went out of his way, stopped me and told me "Hell of a job back there tonight.  Very consistent."  That always stuck with me because 1) he got his ass handed to him and 2) he wasn't just passing by me, I was actually trying to avoid him and he came to me.

 

I know when a catcher is being honest vs. kissing ass...same with coaches.  None of it really matters.  Though it is awful nice to get a coach to tell you at the plate meeting the next day they saw the replay and you got a controversial call right.  That's pretty awesome and gives you instant credibility.

 

I have the fortunate (or unfortunate...how ever you look at it) opportunity to do some games on TV.  I try to DVR them when I can and like to go back and look at pitches or plays I had to see if I got them right or what might have gone wrong if I missed one.  But I don't obsess over it either.  I watch it once or twice and move on.

 

I usually know when I miss a pitch and will own up to it right away.  I'll tell the catcher or batter I missed it and will stay with it longer.  If the dugout is burning down and I feel I got the pitch right, I'll get with one of my partners to see if I missed it.  I had a situation this year where I rung up a batter on a 3-2 count with the bases loaded to end the inning.  I ended up running the batter and head coach in between innings.  The next inning I called in one of my partners and told him I had it at the bottom of the knees on the plate.  He told me he actually had it at the top of the knees.  That's the only time I wasn't confident in my calls this year.  For a batter and coach to explode like they did I thought I had to have missed the pitch.

 

I really like to post-game.  Guys who attend our clinics always want to sit in on our pre-games.  I would much rather have someone sit in on a post-game.  Our pre-game is usually "don't fornicate anything up".  Our post-game gets pretty in depth - what we had on particular plays or pitches, positioning, reads, etc.

[Jocko]

I judge it by how many GLM phone numbers I get after the game.  

I have stacks of em. How many you want? :givebeer:

[grayhawk]

I judge it by how many GLM phone numbers I get after the game.

I have stacks of em. How many you want?

WOMENS phone numbers!

[Replacematt]

I don't think there's any hard rules that you can use. My gauge is almost wholly internal and developed with experience. It's the grayest of gray areas...just like everything else, you start off not knowing what you don't know (I thought I was awesome when I first started, because I didn't know enough to know when I sucked,) then you know what you don't know (later, I thought I sucked every game because I didn't know how to avoid the mistakes I now knew I was making,) and finally you know what you know (now, I'm very keen on being in tune with my game and can feel when it's good or not.) If I'm having a bad game, I know because pitches seem "off." I see the whole thing, but the little part of my brain that tells me ball or strike can't make a decision, as if there's more it needs to know. On the bases, routine plays seem like bangers or overly complicated.

[ricka56]

I judge it by how many GLM phone numbers I get after the game.  

 

Even if I hit a two bagger, that's a good game.