BINGO! I got it! I got it, and I got it in a BIG WAY!

[The Man in Blue]

I had the opportunity to work a HS game at Busch Stadium yesterday.  3-umpire crew.  It amazed me how big the field felt and how small the stadium looked from the field.

 

I started the game on third, but we swapped after 4 innings, and I went over to first.  First play was a BANGER . . . they showed it up on the scoreboard . . . 

 

It was my day.

Home team up to bat, down 1.  R1.  Batter hits it to left field and the left fielder misplays it.  We are off to the races.  PU rotates up, and I rotate to home expecting this to die at third base.  It always dies at third base.  There is a reason this is the Holy Grail. 

 

It never happens.  

Roundin' third and headed for home . . . no idea what color his eyes were . . . but here he comes. 

 

Ball firing in, head first slide . . . and I get the BIG SAFE call on the play at the plate for the winning run.

And yes, I did it.  The plate was already dirty, so why not.

I think I should retire now.

 

 

 

[MadMax]

On 4/20/2026 at 9:57 PM, The Man in Blue said:

I had the opportunity to work a HS game at Busch Stadium yesterday.

Welcome to our world. Glad you liked the accoutrements. 

On 4/20/2026 at 9:57 PM, The Man in Blue said:

And yes, I did it.  The plate was already dirty, so why not.

At least you did "it" after the Runner touched the plate, scored, and the play(s) was (were) completed. 🙄
That idiot set us (umpires) back by fifty years in the "social standing" circles of umpire / public relations. 

[Velho]

17 minutes ago, MadMax said:

On 4/20/2026 at 7:57 PM, The Man in Blue said:

And yes, I did it.  The plate was already dirty, so why not.

At least you did "it" after the Runner touched the plate, scored, and the play(s) was (were) completed.

Sorry, wait a minute. There are U1s that kick dirt on the plate during live action?

[MadMax]

1 hour ago, Velho said:

There are U1s that kick dirt on the plate during live action?

Infamously, there was an (singular) umpire who was sO eXcItEd to "check his Umpire Bingo Card", he made a beeline for the plate and kicked a copious amount of dirt on the plate... while the BR was still rounding 3B, much to the puzzlement of all observing. Of course, rampant speculation from keyboard warriors and desk-chair umpires circled around, "If he (BR) doesn't / didn't touch HP, you'd (umpires on game) have called him (BR) out, right?! Where's your (umpire) accountability?! Is there some kind of fix in??", etc. etc. etc. 

Video here (Maybe @Velho can find a different version, or one of the U-E residents can locate it in the archive, circa 2016... we had an extensive talk about it):
https://bleacherreport.com/articles/2639434-umpire-appears-to-cover-home-plate-with-dirt-waits-to-see-if-runner-touches-it

 

[The Man in Blue]

Now I am even more confused.  WHY was there a rotation on a home run?