Monday: On Umpires

When I worked on the staff at a Boy Scout camp a few years ago, I sometimes helped out as the umpire in the wiffleball games that the campers participated in. It wasn’t a difficult job and it wasn’t very arduous either (partly because these were kids playing, and many of them didn’t care about the game), but at same time, I had my share of tricky moments. Though the ball was plastic and moved pretty slow, sometimes there would be a play at first base where I had difficulty making an accurate call. The angles had to be just right, and my sense of timing had to be extremely precise. This experience made me think about professional umpires in MLB. Not only do they have to deal with the high velocity of the ball, they also have to be prepared to take heat from the players and managers when they make a controversial call. And the worst part is that when they make a call that brings out tantrums from the players, often they know they probably got the call wrong (unless the player is someone like Eddie Milner, who argued what seemed like every call that went against him).

I think one of the most difficult elements in the life of an umpire, besides having to make the close calls, is the positioning on the field. If you watch a game, you’ll find that the umpires have a set pattern for the calling plays depending where the ball goes. If there’s going to be a close play at third base, the umpire must watch what’s happening, find his set position, and not get in the way of the play. And that’s not even the hard part, as he still has to make a difficult call if the play happens to be close.

Another difficult part of this job is studying and learning the MLB Official Rulebook. I own a copy of the text, and looking through it, I was amazed at how intricate it actually is. The book takes every possible scenario and has a complex explanation for each one. It is obligatory that the Umpires memorize these rules though, because there’s no telling when one of these plays might happen to occur.

Focus is another key element in an umpire’s job. The first and third base umpires must be mentally prepared to make a call at any given moment. What’s even more difficult though is that they must always watch the pitches to make sure if a hitter checks his swing or not. Imagine if a player tried to check his swing, but the umpire was wandering and didn’t pay attention. Never seen it happen, meaning their focus remains steady for all nine innings.

Another factor, mainly for the home plate umpire, is the risk of getting injured. Foul balls often hit umpires, and though they wear masks, the suffering they go through is always perceptible. But that’s not the worst of it. We recently saw Kerwin Danley get hit by a bat broken bat by the Rangers’ own Hank Blalock. Danley was taken off the field and hospitalized, though luckily not seriously injured.

With all of the demands and difficulties umpires face, what’s probably most discouraging about the job is that they’re never cheered, and when they make a good call they’re ignored, and when they make a bad call, they’re booed ad infinitum. But there must be some love for the job because otherwise people wouldn’t do it. I think the central reason for pursuing it is for love of the game. People love the sport of baseball, and by becoming a great umpire they’re helping the game out, because great umpires are what make it all work.

Also, though the average fan does not hold much respect for the umpires, any real fan of baseball will recognize names like Jerry Crawford, Joe West, and Mike Reilly, all of whom have served at least 25 years in the Major Leagues. These umpires are important members of the game, and will leave an inevitable legacy.

I admire every single umpire, because not only is their job extremely strenuous, but also they possess great skill, which unfortunately isn’t appreciated as much as it should be. If you want a good story on what the life of umpires is really like, MLB.com published a terrific article that can be found here.