Another Stern Rebuke Coming!

[JonnyCat]

 

[Lou B]

The league said this was "an isolated incident", why do I find that hard to believe?

[The Man in Blue]

And that ALL the participants have been banned … not buying that either.

As much as I hate to see this outcome, it is nice to see umpires standing together and saying, “Not working those games.”

[Vegas_Ump]

And that's why I left umpiring after being a VOLUNTEER for 34 years!

Mike

[SeeingEyeDog]

To our ABUA brothers...we see you brothers. We see you, we support you, we stand with you and we love you. Nobody should be working those games until they have presented a plan...you heard the man! LL has a rule to govern this! It's not an easy rule to enforce but, ABUA and everyone working and volunteering to umpire LL games AROUND THE WORLD needs that rule enforced. That rule is the role of the game administrator. My local LL had started rolling this out just before COVID and it was definitely reducing the problems at the ballpark. The issue was, trying to find a parent with no rooting interest to serve as a volunteer game administrator. It's hard enough to find umpires. Finding people to come early and administer the game before their child's or stay late and administer the game after their child's is indeed a challenge. I submit as a GLOBAL baseball community...either all of us want this situation to improve or we don't. If we do then part of enrolling your child in LL is agreeing to serve a minimum number of games as a game administrator. LL Umpires, if you know you have a game administrator at the field, please include them in the plate meeting so both coaches know who this person is. Anybody harassing, threatening or physically assaulting a sports official should be banned from their team's games for the remainder of that season. If they have another incident, they should be banned from ever attending that league's games again.

Hey ESPN...while you are jamming LL content down our throats every August? How about some SERIOUS televised town hall meetings, public service announcements or just let Jessica Mendoza unleash her fury on this situation?

LL is a major slice of the youth baseball pie but, there's a lot of OTHER slices in that pie, too! Travel leagues and tournaments, PONY, American Legion, and countless other leagues and organizations...If you don't have a plan to reduce and address umpire abuse? You are doing it wrong and need to start making better choices!

And finally, my brothers...warn and eject and if that doesn't work, walk off the GD field. DO NOT put your health and well-being and the health and well-being of others on your crew at risk! If necessary, call 911. Pre-game these situations. What resources might you have at the ballpark for this game? What are you and your crew going to do if there's a problem? Plan for problems and execute your plan! If you don't have a plan, check with your mentors, your assigners, or association or league leadership immediately.

~Dawg 

[JonnyCat]

7 hours ago, SeeingEyeDog said:

Hey ESPN...while you are jamming LL content down our throats every August? How about some SERIOUS televised town hall meetings, public service announcements or just let Jessica Mendoza unleash her fury on this situation?

Agree 100%!

And while they're at it, stop referring to the umpires as strictly "volunteer umpires."

They're not volunteers at that level. They are experienced and well trained umpires that volunteer their time to the LL program. Period.

The ESPN assholes always make it sound the umpires were dragged off the street and thrown on the game. Never do they explain the hard work and process it takes to get to a LL Regional or World Series. F*#K those people at ESPN!

[Vegas_Ump]

On 6/11/2023 at 3:28 PM, JonnyCat said:

And while they're at it, stop referring to the umpires as strictly "volunteer umpires."

 

Jonny I hear ya, but.......

When I started umpiring, it was in Chantilly, VA.  That little town grew from a dot town on the map to a huge city!  And with it came the desire to form Little League baseball.  Some really experienced umpires got together and started the Chantilly Volunteer Umpire Association (CVUA).  They made it clear to the parents that these folks were volunteers, and harassment would drive them away!  And the tuition for their kids would go from $35 per season to over $250 in order to schedule paid umpires.  Before I left for Vegas, we were doing 75 games of all levels of baseball and softball per week with 55 volunteer umpires.

I continued to refuse pay when I got to Las Vegas.  Over the years, I attended (and helped teach) annual umpire training (field and rules), a few Southeastern Region weekend clinics, And the full-up Western Region Clinic.  In both Virginia and Nevada, I saw dedicated umpires work many levels other than Little League;  and as you pointed out, they were experienced and well-trained umps who dedicated their time for free to do LL games.

I guess I am confused by your context, and I apologize if I did.  But I have never shyed away from being a volunteer umpire for LL.  And I did reach many State tourneys in VA and NV and WR in 2017.  Being a volunteer motivated me.  Being accosted in the parking made me walk.

ESPN can't help it if they don't have the vocabulary to articulate what a volunteer umpire is all about.  But being a volunteer was very special.

Peace!
 

Mike

Las Vegas

[JonnyCat]

2 hours ago, Vegas_Ump said:

I guess I am confused by your context, and I apologize if I did.  But I have never shyed away from being a volunteer umpire for LL.  And I did reach many State tourneys in VA and NV and WR in 2017.  Being a volunteer motivated me.  Being accosted in the parking made me walk.

I too am a volunteer for LL baseball and have been for 22 years, not only as an umpire, but a manager, coach, board member, and even league president. This year I don't hardly work any paid games at the HS or Adult levels. (That's another story.) I have never accepted pay to work LL games. I've had the opportunity to get paid for LL games on a few occasions, but I always tell the assignor to give the game fee back to the league.

Yes, I'm a proud LL volunteer, and some of the best umpires I've ever worked with are LL volunteers as well. LL got me my start in umpiring and has led to 2 Regional assignments.

However, I don't consider myself a volunteer umpire. I'm an umpire. I'm a well trained umpire that does not accept money to work LL games. 

That's the distinction ESPN needs to make. Everyone on my 2022 LL Regional crew in San Bernardino worked other games besides LL. But when those assholes at ESPN keep repeating the mantra that all the LL umpires are volunteers, it makes it sound as if we're a different class of umpires. It leads to much criticism and a perception in the public's eyes that the LL umpires suck because they aren't paid. Yes, I've read many a comment on YouTube and other media and social media outlets to back that perception up.

By referring to us as only volunteer umpires, they portray us a being less competent that other umpires. When in fact, myself especially, many of us have WAY more training that most of the umpires we work with.

We're umpires. We're just not getting paid for those games. The ESPN talking heads could at least make that distinction. LL should make sure they make that distinction.

[BigBlue4u]

On 6/11/2023 at 2:06 PM, SeeingEyeDog said:

And finally, my brothers...warn and eject and if that doesn't work, walk off the GD field. DO NOT put your health and well-being and the health and well-being of others on your crew at risk! If necessary, call 911.

Good advice Dwag.  But, it's a sad commentary about where we are with youth sports.   😞