Being a "professional" amatuer

"Professional" is a word that is thrown about a lot in society today, especially in sports. From a classification for high school officials, to high school and college kids wanting to "jump to the pros," before they are truly ready, or a young player making a "pro-like" move on the diamond or court. Being a "professional" basically means showing a businesslike manner in a workplace (thank you Mr. Webster).

If you think about it, as amatuer umpires, we always want to strive to be the most "professional" umpires we can be. We will never be truly professional umpires in baseball terms unless we go to umpire school and make it through the ranks in Professional ball. Even though we don't make hundreds of thousands of dollars, we drive to all our games, and our locker room is the trunk of our cars in the parking lot, we strive to be and are expected to strive to be a "professional" umpire.

Just because we don't get paid the big bucks to work the local high school or rec. league games, doesn't mean we can't (or shouldn't) act professional. Here are some things, I have found out (either by experience, or from others) that will help you gain a "professional" image:

1. Appearance: Appearance is first because it is hands down the most important thing to being a "professional" umpire. Fans, coaches, and players (and other umpires) can tell a lot about an umpire by the way he looks. Make sure your uniform is following state or association standards. It needs to be clean and pressed. Polish your shoes. I do it at least once a week (some suggest before every game) and also before big/important games. Your uniform is the most basic way to show professionalism on the diamond. A sloppy uniform indicates that you may not care enough about the game to take the time to press it (or at least clean it). A sloppy uniform also might indicate a lack of knowledge of the rules. A sloppy uniform will damage your credibility.

2. Hustle: Good "professional" amatuer umpires hustle to get into good positions to make the correct calls. You movements on the diamond should be crisp, clean, and direct. Hustling on a play increases your chances of having the best position to make a critical decision. Be careful, however, you can overhustle and hustle yourself out of position.

3. Calm, Cool, and Collected: Great "professional" amatuer umpires stay calm and under control even in the craziest of situations. The world could be falling apart around you but you need to be in complete control of your emotions, mannerisms, and tone. In a nut shell, you will many times be the only voice of reason and control in a ball game. A "professional" umpire rarely has to raise their voice or eject a player/coach/fan from a game. You have to keep collected and focused to do your job right. Don't get wrapped up in all of the emotion of the game. As soon as you do, you have officially lost control of the game, the game now has you under control. You need to stay in control in order to make the correct call at a crucial part of the game.

Hopefully these three things can help you move on your way to being not only a better, more respected umpire, but help you get noticed and maybe selected for your state/league tournament.