When Things Don't Go Quite As Planned...

Sometimes, despite your best efforts as an umpire, things on the baseball field don't go as planned. That is the beauty and frustration of baseball and I think it is what makes the game so special. You can be the most prepared umpire in the world and there will still be things on a baseball field that will make you go, "hmm, never seen that before", or "whoa! What just happened?!" Well, this weekend, my partner, Adam, and I had a lot of those things happen.

This weekend I had a double header over at Lakeland High School in LaGrange County. Its a good place to do baseball games and usually things don't get too crazy. Well, that all change once we stepped on the field Saturday.

Anything that could happen during the course of a baseball game happened during our two games. We had balks, 3 straight hit batsmen, whackers at every base including home, an ejection, controversy, runs taken off the board, more pitching changes than you could shake a stick at, and to top it off, an extra inning game (which I so luckily had the plate for).

Adam and I handled every situation as best we could. We actually only made one mistake, but it was correctible and both sides were settled. There are just days in every umpire's career where the game just decides to challenge you, your mechanics, and your knowledge of the rules. Most of the time we are pretty good at this but there are days when the game beats us. We have to take it all in stride and continue to do our best to improve so we are ready the next time the situation arrives.

My best advice: When things are not going as planned, it is crucial for both umpires to keep their composer and cool. Evaluate each situation as it arises on its own merits and make a ruling on the play according to the information you have for certain and the rules. If you do this, you can hopefully prevent ugly situations where coaches, players, or even fans, would need to be removed from the game.

Let the Games Begin!

Well, it is official! The high school baseball season in Indiana has started! I started my season with a pre season scrimmage at Bethany Christian where they play Elkhart Central. It was good to get out their and get some work in before the real season started. My regular partner and I worked the scrimmage and it was good to work together again. Elkhart Central is looking good with a deep pitching staff and an offense that will definitely win them some games. Bethany is going to be ok but it is tough to say because they are a small school playing against a far bigger school.

As the season gets started, I have some simple reminders for you:

1. Stay patient. Don't rush into a call. Look, process, call.
2. Stay Calm. Things will get crazy. It is baseball after all. Your job is to "stay above the fray" and be professsional.
3. Look Good. Make sure you and your uniform look clean, crisp, and professional.
4. Have Fun. If your not having fun, there is something wrong. Relax and enjoy the fact they are paying you to do this.

Good luck as your season started!