Foreward/Intro
Throughout my career as an umpire, I have been greeted with both great anticipation and doubt. When I took this job, I knew that I would go through some difficult bumps with coaches, parents, and even the children taking the game too seriously. With people acting like it’s the major leagues and your call will be the biggest mistake of your life, it can feel like everyone is on your back, and saying that you’re wrong or blind; there’s bound to be trouble. This job seems to only have negative thoughts and may lead to stressful lives, but this is just the stereotype. My purpose here is to show you the true perspective of a teenage
umpire and why on Earth a high school student may perform this task when he already has too much on his plate from school and from his social live. It occurs to people that becoming an umpire is just another way of saying,“ I’m insane!” What doesn’t occur to them is why we decide to take the risk and go out on the field. Let me tell you how I became interested with umpiring. When I was playing in the Bronco Division (a 2-year division for kids ages 11-13), I was chosen by my coach, Ken Law, to be a captain for the team. He told me personally that I was a good supporter and if he were to administer a test of the rules, I would receive the highest score. Over the season, I thought about what he said. I realized that my curiosity for the rules was the driving force. Also, during the season,I noticed the umpires were teenagers. Right there, I knew that I could be an umpire and I could gain more knowledge of the rules. So, when the opportunity came
to sign up and become an umpire, I naturally went for it. I also decided to do this because of the love for the game. I knew for a long time that I loved baseball. The question about it was, “How much?” I realized how much after umpiring behind the plate for a Mustang Division game (another division for kids of ages 8-10). It was in the 5th inning with the Pirates leading the Cubs by nine runs, one less than what was required for an automatic forfeit. With games in the division only lasting for 6 innings, it looked as if the game was over. The Cubs, all of a sudden, presented a different set of gloves and bats. They were performing plays that were above what was expected. They sent the ball in flight when they were swinging. It all came down to the final out with the score tied and a man on first. The batter swung and hit a line drive down straight towards the center fielder. He bobbled with the ball until it landed on the ground. The runner from first was rounding third. The fielder picked it up and threw it past the cut-off man, an in-fielder who is supposed to receive the ball, and straight into the catcher ’s mitt. The play was in action. As the runner slid into home, the catcher tried to tag the runner out, but the ball came out of his glove and traveled into the backboard. With no sign of interference, I declared the runner safe. The Cubs won the game. When I’m umpiring, I don’t care about who wins or loses, all I want from my experiences was to get the sense of action. This game didn’t
bring a short supply.