Many things can be true at the same time

[Velho]

And we can learn from all of them.

Know your positioning, manage how you engage, and ignore the fence, all come immediately to mind - and I'm sure you all with have other thoughts.

To be clear: not posting as a condemnation but simply that sometimes we learn best from less than perfect execution.

 

[SeeingEyeDog]

This is hard to watch but, I watched it...it's harder to discuss.

As for the positioning and mechanics, hopefully someone in his association has been made aware of this video and can speak with him in calm, fundamental, basic terms to help him understand both why his techniques are sub-optimal which then also led to the verbal abuse from the coach and spectators. Frankly, he was so poor here that if it were my decision, he would not be on the field again until he had had some evaluation games and or attended a 2-man clinic. Is it laziness? (I don't know...and it's a relevant question.) Is it lack of knowledge and awareness? (I don't know...and that's also a relevant question.) There is a reason he is making the poor choices he is making. Why is he doing that?

He could have access to the best trainers The Craft has to offer. It starts with him as it starts with all of us...inside. Nobody can make another person feel pride in their work. Much of my professional life has been in hospitality and service. About the best I have come up with when teaching people that care for a customer or guest is at the heart of hospitality and service is, "Who is the person you most look up to or admire in this world? If you pretend that every person you encounter is that revered person in your life, you are on your way to learning how to serve people in this job..." I don't know how you impress upon a person taking pride in their work as an umpire. It's more a practical discussion. There are no guarantees but, proper positioning, mechanics, rules knowledge all of our core skill areas help to prevent these kinds of issues with coaches from even flaring up in the first place.

All umpires kick and miss calls at all levels of baseball. My wish for all of us is that none of us ever kicks or misses something that impacts the outcome of a game. If you're going to insist on taking the field with the kinds of sub-optimal positioning and mechanics displayed here, you CANNOT then back that up with poor game management and people skills where you insist upon "winning" every argument. And we never have ANY reason to address the fence about anything...at all...ever. Fans are going to fan. That's not an umpire's purview. All he needed to do here is come to the edge of the dirt circle, turn to the coach with his hand up and calmly say, "Coach, I hear you. We're not going to have any more of that. If you continue, you will be ejected." We do NOT editorialize on what happened...ever.

~Dawg 

[The Man in Blue]

Like you said, the obvious is the obvious.  Let me try some of the less than obvious … and I have no idea if any of these are true, I am only presenting possible talking points:

The Law of Diminishing Returns: Game 3 or 4 or 5 or 6 or 7 or 13 without a break … We — umpires, assignors, UICs, tournament directors, coaches, parents — have to not only stop doing this, but stop allowing it.  
The question to ask is “What are you hiring for?”  Are you wanting umpires?  Or are you wanting a body that allows a game to technically be played?

As a partner … what is the point when you throw in your towel?  I have never done that, but there are times when I have wanted to.  We never want to hang a partner out to dry, but what do we do when they are doing it to themselves?  

We cannot do this.  We cannot remain aloof and think it absolves us.  

Personally, when in that situation, I try to show the coaches that I am trying to work with my partner to get things on track.  I do NOT take the coaches’ side, but I show them that I am not “allowing this to happen.”  I am more willing to talk to the coaches and hear them out (as long as we stay at “frustration” and don’t move to “attack mode”), and maybe even give them a little more leash, but they also need to be listening to me as I explain (not blindly defend) what is going on.

—————

The fence has been mentioned a few times … was that bit a fan?  Or was it the coach as he was headed out?  I thought “fan” at first, but the dialogue seemed as if it was the coach.

[lawump]

That was painful to watch on so many levels.  I guess I'll add it to my video library under "how not to do things".