Game Fees

[blue32]

Hey everyone, have a question for you all. My local HS association is beginning negotiations for a new contract. Just curious what other states are paying for Varsity games? Just the fee, not including mileage. I’m on Idaho, and we are getting $75 plus mileage, which I suspect is below the national average. If you all wouldn’t mind sharing your state and what you are getting, that would be very helpful. TIA!

[SeeingEyeDog]

Just remember, like any negotiation...decide what your minimum number is, come out of the gate at +25% of that, let the opposition wipe themselves off...and then work back to your minimum number. Of course, they'll be doing that, too...

Also, make sure you understand the dynamics of your market.  Is there competition from another association? If yes, what's their number? If no, well...you have them by the short hairs and they may not have another option. It's just a scrimmage without umpires. We're not here for the money and we don't work for free. Every umpire at the negotiation table needs to remember every bad thing they ever saw or heard about on a HS baseball field and put that into your negotiation calculus. Best of luck to you and your local brothers and I hope you get every nickel because they will make you earn every nickel.

~Dawg

[The Man in Blue]

No mileage or anything in this part of Illinois.  Occasionally (rarely) an AD in a pinch might offer a little gas money.

Our pay is seeing some wild market swings though.  Currently for MS ball, we are seeing anything from $55 to $100 per game.  It is bizarre.  Post season is only paying $60/game.  Problem is, the schools hosting typically pay significantly better … guys are dropping their post season games at an alarming rate right now.  I’ve seen a dozen games “mass blasted” out today alone, and that’s on top of the four I turned down in direct offers.

HS games I would say averaged $80 last season, but also saw the widest variations I’ve ever seen.  

[blue32]

Appreciate the replies. I probably should have stated on my post, I’m not part of the negotiations, I was just curious what other areas were paying as the base rate without mileage for a varsity HS game. From what I have heard here and there, the $75 rate we are currently getting is below the national average, so I figured I could hear it from the horse’s mouth. 

[JonnyCat]

In San Diego County, we get $87.00 each, varsity 2 man, which is woefully inadequate for our area and the cost of living.

Honestly, and I've railed about it many times here, it should be at least $150.00 each, varsity 2 man.

$87.00 for around a 4 hour commitment or more is a F*#King joke, especially with gas at over $5.00 per gallon in Kommiefornia. Damnit, am I getting political again? I hate myself! 

And we're having a nationwide shortage of sports officials? Weird.

[noumpere]

Chicago area will (mostly) be $77 in spring 2024; goes up by $2 each year for the next two years.  No mileage paid (or, more accurately, it's bundled into that $77 fee).

 

The OP also needs to consider who pays the assigning fee -- in some areas it's in the game fee and the umpire pays the assigner; in others, the school pays the assigner directly.

 

[SeeingEyeDog]

16 hours ago, JonnyCat said:

In San Diego County, we get $87.00 each, varsity 2 man, which is woefully inadequate for our area and the cost of living.

Honestly, and I've railed about it many times here, it should be at least $150.00 each, varsity 2 man.

$87.00 for around a 4 hour commitment or more is a F*#King joke, especially with gas at over $5.00 per gallon in Kommiefornia. Damnit, am I getting political again? I hate myself! 

And we're having a nationwide shortage of sports officials? Weird.

Something that really helped us greatly this spring was framing our HS baseball umpiring fees against the other HS school sports. What is the time commitment? What is the distance? We were stunned to learn that field hockey and lacrosse officials in my state get a travel bump of $20 if they go outside their home county. For baseball, I call going outside my home county...TUESDAY!

These fee negotiations have also led to some local discussions about implementing time limits on HS baseball games. Most HS players in my market also play travel ball and travel ball runs with "no new after an hour and fifty minutes", so this would be easy to implement in the HS game. You get 2 bad HS teams and a 7 inning game with no time limit might be a 4 hour affair, plus your drive. HS football in my market pays each official a minimum of $100 per game (that's about $35 more than our previous umpire fee...) and I think they operate with a 5-man crew. Admittedly, football has something of a gate in terms of their finances because it's a social night for the community and lots of people show up. HS baseball charges admission too but, it's mostly family and close friends attending.

~Dawg

[JonnyCat]

2 hours ago, SeeingEyeDog said:

Something that really helped us greatly this spring was framing our HS baseball umpiring fees against the other HS school sports. What is the time commitment? What is the distance? We were stunned to learn that field hockey and lacrosse officials in my state get a travel bump of $20 if they go outside their home county.

That's an excellent idea, one that everyone should implement. Baseball officials need to get paid in line with other sports.

When my youngest son was swimming in HS, I talked with some of the officials from time to time. I was shocked at how much they made for WAY less work and time than us. They got a flat fee of about $100.00 for showing up, plus a few more bucks for EACH event. They would walk away with about $120.00 - $150.00 for about 2 hours of work. And easy work. You start each event, and look for DQ's. Their uniform didn't break the bank, consisting of a white shirt and white pants, maybe a hat and some sunscreen. They would show up 10 minutes before each meet and left right after. No changing out of sweaty gear and cleaning it. Plus the kids were always super respectful and had great sportsmanship. Never an argument over a DQ, no coaches and parents screaming at them, no 80 mph projectiles at their heads.

We're definitely not getting paid our worth.

[The Man in Blue]

It makes a little harder to argue when opening your mouth could lead to you drowning.  

[834k3r]

On 9/9/2023 at 12:16 PM, SeeingEyeDog said:

These fee negotiations have also led to some local discussions about implementing time limits on HS baseball games. Most HS players in my market also play travel ball and travel ball runs with "no new after an hour and fifty minutes", so this would be easy to implement in the HS game. You get 2 bad HS teams and a 7 inning game with no time limit might be a 4 hour affair, plus your drive.

Our association (in coordination with the district coaches) implemented a "no new after 2" rule for sub-varsity games this past season--everyone liked it, and coaches outside the district want to make it a state-wide rule.

[MarsOmega]

In NY, we get 103.25 each if there are two umpires and 154.88 if there is only one umpire for varsity games.

[blue32]

This is all great info, and much appreciated!

[kylehutson]

Late to the posting party...

Here game fees are determined by the school (and in many schools, the league dictates the rates). In the last two years, it's been in the $70-$75/game range for HS varsity, $60-70 for JV. No mileage.

Comparing sports is useful. I also work volleyball, largely for the same schools. On a weeknight, I will usually make a little less (typically $35-$40/game for 3 games), but

• Games start later, so I don't have to take as much time off of work
• I work fewer total hours (usually 3 as compared to 4-1/2)
• Sportsmanship is frankly not an issue (I've gone entire seasons without issuing as much as a yellow card, and I've never issued a disqualification)
• No rainouts/weather issues or last-minute schedule/venue changes
• I can work a full day of tournaments on the weekend and not feel completely worthless by the time I'm done (and will make more money when I do)

[834k3r]

1 hour ago, kylehutson said:

Comparing sports is useful. I also work volleyball, largely for the same schools. On a weeknight, I will usually make a little less (typically $35-$40/game for 3 games), but

OT, but am I the only one that initially read this is as "wee knight"?

I am? Okay, I'll see myself out...

[MadMax]

5 hours ago, MarsOmega said:

In NY, we get 103.25 each if there are two umpires and 154.88 if there is only one umpire for varsity games.

Whoa. 😲 

Two things that must be understood when seeing these numbers for New York – 

1. In many states (AZ, for one), there cannot be a Varsity game with only 1 umpire. There are extreme, rare exceptions, and extenuating circumstances may allow a game to complete with 1 umpire, but a Varsity game cannot start with 1 umpire. The same is in place for soccer and basketball; there must be at least 2. 
2. The cost of living is dramatically higher in New York – gas, insurance, fees, etc. The game fees are higher in accordance. 

With that said, California – explain yourself. 

[ousafe]

Heres the plan...live in Idaho, get NY game fees and Texas mileage.

[JonnyCat]

1 hour ago, MadMax said:

With that said, California – explain yourself. 

Well, we're stupid and we're infiltrated by communists.

Darn it, Max. You set me up again to get political! Oh well, I did say I was stupid. 

We do have 1 man varsity games sometime. It's just unavoidable with the shortage of officials and SH*#ty pay.

[The Man in Blue]

1 hour ago, ousafe said:

Heres the plan...live in Idaho, get NY game fees and Texas mileage.

Well ... I mean, they want a robo ump ... so why can't I just work remotely from anywhere?

Then, we could call multiple games at one time ... nationwide access to officials when you need a last minute replacement ... reduced uniform costs ... I'm talking myself into this BS.  😋

[The Man in Blue]

43 minutes ago, JonnyCat said:

Well, we're stupid and we're infiltrated by communists.

Darn it, Max. You set me up again to get political! Oh well, I did say I was stupid. 

We do have 1 man varsity games sometime. It's just unavoidable with the shortage of officials and SH*#ty pay.

 

I just want to point out that the second part of that statement is 100% incorrect.  It is totally avoidable.  People just don't want to do what it takes to avoid it.

[JonnyCat]

1 hour ago, The Man in Blue said:

 

I just want to point out that the second part of that statement is 100% incorrect.  It is totally avoidable.  People just don't want to do what it takes to avoid it.

Not incorrect, just an unfortunate byproduct of ignoring the problems for way too long. In our area, it is sometimes unavoidable, there's just not enough officials. That's the reality we have in SoCal. Not sure how it is in other parts. It doesn't happen too often here, but it does happen.

I agree with you, it should be unavoidable, and I've had many a rant on here about that very thing. However, that train passed the station long ago. Because very little has been done about the shortage in the past number of years, 1 man varsity in some areas has become a reality.

[The Man in Blue]

I agree it is a byproduct of ignoring the situation for too long.  But it still is totally avoidable, even today.  What it takes is umpires to quit doing it.  As long as we keep doing it because we get an extra fraction of a pay check, it will keep happening.  If we start saying, "No, you must have two," then teams will reschedule games.  It is avoidable.  Some people just don't want to avoid it though.

Football crews don't split down to 2- or 3-official crews because there is a shortage.  Schools had to adapt and play games on different days and at different times.

It is not our problem when another umpire cannot be found.  It just isn't.  If one of the teams cancels, do we demand the remaining team shows up and plays anyway?

What I find ironic about the whole scenario is the umpires who do it (around here, anyway) are typically hypocrites.  They are quickest to complain about how much they think they should get paid, but they are not willing to stand with their brothers to facilitate change.  They find it quicker and more profitable to piss all over the cause so they can get an extra 1/2 check for twice the work. 

[JonnyCat]

1 hour ago, The Man in Blue said:

What it takes is umpires to quit doing it.

Agree 100%. I stopped working paid games because of the SH*#ty pay and lousy working conditions. HS and adult baseball can go F*#K themselves with how they treat us. (I stopped doing travel-ball a while time ago for the same reasons.)

How many can say the same?

I refuse to do paid games until the pay and conditions get better. I'll do my SH*#ty LL games with partners I like, I'll pick and choose my games, and I'll have a good time doing it. Maybe even get on TV every once in a while. 

[umpstu]

6 hours ago, MadMax said:

Whoa. 😲 

Two things that must be understood when seeing these numbers for New York – 

1. In many states (AZ, for one), there cannot be a Varsity game with only 1 umpire. There are extreme, rare exceptions, and extenuating circumstances may allow a game to complete with 1 umpire, but a Varsity game cannot start with 1 umpire. The same is in place for soccer and basketball; there must be at least 2. 
2. The cost of living is dramatically higher in New York – gas, insurance, fees, etc. The game fees are higher in accordance. 

With that said, California – explain yourself. 

I live in SoCal and actually love it.  Last year we got $92 for 2 man varsity. I believe it might be $100 for one man varsity and it would be for lower level ball which would probably wind up being mercy ruled. For under class men games it is always one man, $86. 1.5 hours for conference games and 2 hours for non conference.  If you have to drive more than 30 miles you get mileage.

The reason for one man games is due to Cali not giving enough money to pay for two. This has been the situation for a long time. Plus we are so low on the number of umpires that one is all we may have available. And it's only getting worse.

[JSam21]

St. Louis Area, Missouri side only. $96/varsity $75/Sub-Varsity (2 hour time limit). No mileage. 

[lawump]

South Carolina:

$80 varsity.  $125 for a 5-inning DH game (both games).  $160 if either (or both) games are 7-innings.  We have mileage of $0.55/mile...but an $11 minimum.  (I used to live literally behind the right field wall of one school and it used to piss off the AD that he had to pay me a minimum mileage fee.)  So, at a minimum one is getting $91 a game (with $11 not considered taxable).  If one's round-trip total is at least 37-miles, then one's check is $100 or more.  With most schools more than 18.5-miles from my house, the overwhelming majority of varsity games result in a check of more than $100...which is not bad considering the cost of living in SC.

Sub-varsity is $65/$110/$130 with the same mileage.