ARTICLES

A CATCH is the act of a fielder in getting secure possession in his hand or glove of a ball in flight and firmly holding it; providing he does not use his cap, protector, pocket or any other part of his uniform in getting possession. It is not a catch, however, if simultaneously or immediately following his contact with the ball, he collides with a player, or with a wall, or if he falls down, and as a result of such collision or falling, drops the ball. It is not a catch if a fielder touches a fly ball which then hits a member of the offensive team or an umpire and then is caught by another defensive player. If the fielder has made the catch and drops the ball while in the act of making a throw following the catch, the ball shall be adjudged to have been caught. In establishing the validity of the catch, the fielder shall hold the ball long enough to prove that he has complete control of the ball and that his release of the ball is voluntary and intentional. A catch is legal if the ball is finally held by any fielder, even though juggled, or held by another fielder before it touches the ground. Runners may leave their bases the instant the first fielder touches the ball. A fielder may reach over a fence, railing, rope or other line of demarcation to make a catch. He may jump on top of a railing, or canvas that may be in foul ground. No interference should be allowed when a fielder reaches over a fence, railing, rope or into a stand to catch a ball. He does so at his own risk. If a fielder, attempting a catch at the edge of the dugout, is "held up" and kept from an apparent fall by a player or players of either team and the catch is made, it shall be allowed.

Thanks Dave. A communication and mechanic method that has been taught at all levels which helps umpires in this situation is to call the out and reinforce the drop, by calling, “He’s out, he’s out,” (point to the ball on the ground) and declare, “He’s pulling it out.” The proper mechanic would be to signal out with your right hand (as normal during the call, “He’s out”) and then make a pulling motion-separating the hands (while saying, “He’s pulling it out.”).

Same, situation, different circumstances … R1, grounder to shortstop. He makes the throw and as 2B is making the pivot, the ball comes out. As an umpire, you’re focused on the play at second, while “migrating” a little to first. When the ball comes out, stop and walk towards the bag at second and do as above, (“He’s out, he’s out; he’s pulling it out”). The chances for arguments go away real quick with this simple mechanic and communication.

In an e-mail to umpiring commissioner Tim McIntyre, I already talked about one of my pet peeve mechanics: a base umpiring chasing fly balls everywhere in the outfield with no runners on. As a crew, that looks unorganized and can lead to many problems. Another mechanic that – as an organization – we need to be consistent on is, plate work. Calling balls and strikes is usually the focal point of our games, because we do it 200 times a game. Players don’t like to be struck out; no one likes to “lose.” How we handle calling balls and strikes, determines how well – or how poorly – a game will go every time we walk onto the field.

Let’s discuss some basic mechanics of plate work and examine ways in which we can enforce the ultimate goal of the plate umpire – consistency. First and foremost in calling balls and strikes is comfort behind the catcher. Take a stance that, (a) allows you to be comfortable for 3 plus hours, (b) allows you to see the plate, the strike zone, the pitcher’s delivery and (c) uses the catcher as a “shield” against foul balls. Easier said than done.

There are three basic stances you can employ while working the plate, finding one of comfort and effectiveness should be your top priority. The most employed stance used today is the box stance. Stand comfortably behind the catcher, slightly in the “slot” between the catcher and the batter, with a clear view of the pitcher in his wind up motion. Feet should be comfortably apart, balanced to hold your weight as you squat down. As the pitcher winds to deliver, squat down, as in sitting on a chair, keeping your back straight and head still. Move into position in the slot by stopping your downward decent when your chin is about the height of the top of the catcher’s head. Your left arm should be slightly behind your left thigh (foul balls seem to find my forearm like radar there), your right arm folded across your belly. Take a professional, athletic stance from standing to squatting in one smooth motion.

As second position would be a scissors position. In this position, the mechanics at the beginning of the pitch are the same: a position in the slot, an upright start, focusing on the pitcher’s delivery. As the pitcher begins his motion home, genuflect (you Catholics will be best at this) or begin kneeling, sliding your inside (away from the batter) leg back leaning forward and on your outside leg (the one closest to the batter). Again, the final position should be the same as the box stance: stopping your downward motion when your chin is about the height of the top of the catcher’s head. Both arms should be folded slightly, tucked away on top of your outside leg.

A final position is what has most recently been referred to as the “pro stance.” Basically, the mechanics are the same as the two previous stances: getting in the slot, etc., however, your stance is taken with legs farther apart, hands resting in a hands-on-knees position, similar to the stance taken while working the bases. With back erect and head still, remain in this hands-on-knees position throughout the pitch. The drawback to this position is that you are slightly higher than the box or scissors and prone to more foul balls but this stance is good for maintaining a good, solid posture during the pitch.

Now that you’ve incorporated a good, solid stance, let’s look at ways to see pitches better and be more consistent with your calls. While perfectly still and settling into your stance, now focus on the ball’s delivery and do not follow the pitch with your head. Simply move your eyes with the flight of the ball into the catcher’s mitt. This mechanic is akin to taking a snapshot with a camera, if your head (the shutter so to speak) is still, the picture will be clear. If you’re moving your head all about chasing the pitch, your view of the strike zone will be blurred. Time for a guess!

Follow the pitch into the glove and note the balls flight and position over the plate area and through the batter’s strike zone. Establish your top, bottom and left, right allowances on pitches early in the game and maintain that zone throughout. Analyze what you saw, call what you see. In short, every pitch thrown is a strike unless something causes it not to be. In other words, if you think strike on every pitch, you won’t be fooled or surprised when one darts across the plate when you might otherwise have given up on a poor looking pitch. Lastly, take your time. It’s nothing until you call it, take your time to see what you saw and call it.

Here’s one that’s bound to spur controversy amongst our ranks, but good communication is key with our association. So if this positioning discussion encourages communication between us, so be it: that’s all for the good.

Let’s assume this positioning on the field: Runner at second (R2), less than two outs. Base umpire (BU) in position “B” ground ball to third or shortstop.

When the ball is hit, the base umpire will turn, step towards and face the fielder making the play. On the players glance at second to hold the runner, he commits to the throw to first. BU now pivots and takes as many steps towards the 45-foot line at third that will open up that angle to the play at first. All pretty simple to this point, right?

As soon as the fielder throws to first, the runner R2 takes off for third. Who has that play? How do you and who covers what with our two man crews?

Before I answer these, let’s examine a few instinctive things that could lead this play to an “umpire’s breakdown” on the subsequent action. First, the PU might break towards third to cover that next play. This is not good. He could stand at home plate and do nothing. This isn’t good either. The play could have breakdowns before all this happens. What if there’s a pulled foot at first, a swipe tag? What if BU needs assistance and his partner is headed up the line? What if the throw to first is wild and is now headed to dead ball territory? Thought this was gonna be an easy one, eh?

Here are my recommendations for this play. Sound positioning can be discussed during the pre-game to encompass just this scenario. I have found over the years that this positioning technique works best for this situation: When the ball is hit, the PU clears the catcher and moves maybe 5-10 feet beyond the grass/dirt line directly in front of home plate. From here he can see the play develop, R2’s move or hold and the play at first base. Should the play at first base breakdown, PU is there for help, if asked. Should the throw get by F3 and roll towards an unplayable area, PU can abandon his position and head towards a line parallel to the out of bounds to assist there. BU has now all responsibility for R2 and BR.

Without problems at 1B, the plate umpire is now in a position to move towards 3B if a throw takes him there, opening up that angle for that play. In essence, PU and BU are in identical places for the plays at 1B and 3B on opposite mirrored positions from the pitchers mound. Any play that breaks down from here, is handled as normal, PU at home and out of play (over throws), BU responsible for the infield.

Talk about this positioning with your partner some time and try it this way. Let me know what you think, as association member’s opinions are always welcome.

We’ve all thrown someone out of a game. Were we justified in doing so? Are we too stiff or too lenient? When is the proper time to toss someone, when is it inappropriate? Let’s take a look at ejections for a moment and have a discussion on how much and how little we should take as umpires.

There is an old saying among umpires that goes a little like this: “Never throw someone out of a game who hasn’t already thrown himself out for you.” That’s a pretty simple statement that I’m sure we can all understand. If someone is so irate and so belligerent that the only end to the scene he’s creating is to toss him, do it. He’s thrown himself out of the game. But where’s the line? What about not so belligerent and not so obnoxious? Where’s that invisible line?

Here are my guidelines. You can use all or some of them or none of them. But like any guideline, the boundaries expand and contract based on the situation, the game and individuals. But this is a good starting point … for me.

Players are not going to like your calls all the time. On close calls, on strikes and on balls, players are not going to love every call you make. They are competitive. They have to go back to their dugout with 10-15 of their teammates after a personal failure. It’s never their fault. So tolerance is required because of the very competitive nature of this contest. “That’s awful,” “Get your head in the game,” “You’ve been blowing them all day, blue,” are not statements that warrant any action. Even if it gets heated and he continues all the way to the bench, let him go. Understand the competitive nature of the game.

A quick example … close game, close call, mad coach. He comes flying out onto the field, nestles up close and in your face and starts arguing the call. Fight back? Yell louder? No … wait for an opening and calmly say, “Coach, here’s what I got. This is what I saw.” While remaining to the point and precise, explain what you just saw and why you called it this way. Finish by saying, “That’s what I got coach, any further discussion?” Wait a second or two and begin to walk away. If he follows you, now he’s the aggressor and he could be tossing himself. If you stop him by saying, “Coach, we’re all done here,” and he still follows you, guess what?

If coaches and/or players are just unrelenting from the bench and even if this is inciting the crowd to join in on the umpire barrage, one thing – from my experience – that never works is the old hold the hand up and say, “That’s enough.” Or my favorite, “One more word …” The best way to handle a chatty bench is in between innings, quietly approaching which ever base coach walks by you (as PU) to get to their coach’s box. Quietly approach them and in a non-threatening way, politely say, “Coach, I’ve heard about enough abuse out of that dugout for one day. I think we would all concentrate on baseball better today if most of that chatter went away. I’m counting on you to do something about it. Okay coach? Good.” And walk away before he can say anything without chasing you from behind. Now the chatty bench is on his shoulders and guess who goes first if it gets worse? No excuses.

Always give coaches their due, never players. If players want to argue calls, walk away. Do not answer them and do not get in their face. Turn your back and walk away. If a coach comes out to rescue his player, walk farther away, forcing the coach to “come after you” to argue. If you start arguing with players, every player will argue with you – you’ve opened that door too wide now. If coaches wanted to “know what you had” then give them the honest up front answer and ask if they’re satisfied. When you’ve had enough, say so and walk away. Never be the aggressor.

What’s the trigger point to quick tosses and no tosses? That’s an individual question, but here are two examples which happened to me. You be the judge. In the top of the first inning, I punched a “known hot head” out on a called third strike after a nasty breaking ball fooled him. He was irate, all the way to the bench. I turned my back on him and went to the opposite base line while his team took the field. He was playing first base. The first pitch to the opposing batter was inside and I called a ball. He went ballistic, yelling from his first base position, coming down the line to argue that call. I dumped him before he hit the grass.

Second example: I called a third strike on an inside corner knuckleball on a batter who had just fouled off no less than six pitches to stay alive at the plate. Bat flew, helmet flew, something about my mother … I walked to the baseline towards his dugout and said, just loud enough for him to hear, “Oh, he’ll be back to bat again.” I swear every plate appearance after that, he swung at the first pitch. I’m pretty sure he was 0-4.

In the first example, I couldn’t let that player argue balls and strikes – even coming down the line – that early in the game (or ever for that matter). I would have had to stand there and take it from every player that game, because precedence would have been set on my tolerance. In the second example, the player was more harm to his teammates than me. Tossing crap into his own dugout and staying angry for the whole game was more detrimental to his play and his team’s than to me. Reminding him that I was “gonna be there” every time he came to the plate sort of showed I was in charge, without showing him up or putting myself “out there” for the fans to see and judge.

Tolerance is one thing, walking away from an impending fight requires restraint. Remember that these people are competitive but we don’t have to put up with poor behavior and poor judgment. Be professional, use wisdom and know where your limits are. That’s my advice.

A lot of our HTUA membership umpire spring high school baseball in advance of the HTL season. Springtime high school baseball is the prime time to refresh mechanics, work on revised mechanics and gauge where your skill level is at, considering the long winter layoff! I say this, not to bemoan high school baseball. High school baseball – although equally competitive – rarely approaches the level of baseball we’re likely to see come the HTL opener, therefore it is the perfect time for making subtle adjustments.

To that extent, spring baseball is a prime opportunity to work on improving your mechanics and positioning techniques. Start out the season by assessing your previous summer. Where were causes for the most concern last year? Were you late on plays? Did you have the wrong angle? Were you missing that low-inside pitch a lot? Once you’ve made an accurate assessment on where your skills could be improved, set yourself a series of goals for the coming season. Then, put together a plan for achieving these goals.

For instance; using myself as an example: Last summer, I caught myself being late on double plays, making the first turn and call at second base, but having a poor angle and/or poor look at the play finishing at first base (my weakness). This spring, I want to work on achieving a better angle at the play at second, while improving my position for the finishing play at first base without sacrificing either play (my goal).

First, I need to dissect the play into two separate plays. The play at second happens right in front of me, regardless where the play originates. That is, a ground ball to third or ground ball to second (or even first base for that matter) makes the same play at second, with little variation. The play at first base however, can result in differing angles and differing views so very dependant upon that play at second. As an example, the play involving a shortstop sliding across the bag and throwing to first is much quicker, fluid and a tad bit more precise. The play involving a second basemen where his momentum is taking him to third, throwing across his body against that momentum results in more “missed plays” at first base; i.e. throws in the dirt, wild throws, etc.

Having said that, here are my mechanics tweaks which should help me approach this routine play in a more confident manner this season. One, I’m right in front of the play at second base (starting in the “C” position) therefore my movements for that play are minimal. As a refresher, once the ball is hit, turn, face the ball and let the throw turn you to the play at second. With hands on knees stance, observe the play and do not anticipate the second throw until it happens. Turn with the throw, heading for the 45-foot line along the first base line and come to a hands on knees set before the catch is made. Observe the action, and call what you saw.

In reviewing these mechanics, I (personally) can see where improvements to my game can be made. Knowing that a double play is in order, I should position myself (after reading the play properly) about halfway between the dirt of the pitcher’s mound and second base’s dirt cutout favoring the first base side. A throw from either side of the infield is immaterial, as the play at second base will open up wide, from this vantage point. As this play begins to unfold at second, while still keeping my eyes and my chest pointed towards second base, I am going to begin to slide towards that 45-foot line. If the play goes smoothly at second and there’s no need to stop, I’ll make my call for second base while on my way to first. As the finishing play unfolds at first base, I am betting that I’ll be at least two if not three steps closer to that play and my angle will be much more open than last year. I am confident that this change in tactic will improve my mechanics as well as my positioning on this play without jeopardizing either call.

Again, as high school level games seldom approach the speed of the games we do in the HTL, what a great time to practice my changes this spring during high school games. Using this example of myself, take the time and effort to evaluate your games from the previous year, then develop a plan for making those little improvements that will always turn a good game, into a great game – from our umpiring perspective. I guarantee you, if you take the time to work on little things and improve upon them, your umpiring experience is going to become more and more rewarding.

I’ll echo our new commissioner’s challenge in closing out this article: “What are you doing to improve your skills this year?”

Welcome to the 2005 season, the 77^th season, of Home Talent Baseball. Dave Thom and Rich Fronheiser welcome the opportunity to serve the league and the teams this season. The following list consists of reminders that will make the season run smoothly for the teams, umpires, and umpire coordinators.

n We feel the main role of the Umpire Coordinator(s), besides scheduling umpires, is to facilitate effective communications between teams and umpires. To that end, we have set up some special email accounts to receive email communication from umpires and teams.

o Dave Thom can be reached by phone at (608) 242-0644 or on his cellular phone at (608) 216-5370.

o Rich Fronheiser can be reached by phone at (608) 850-5076 or on his cellular phone at (608) 469-5722.

o Web: Schedules will be posted, along with all rescheduled games, at both the Home Talent League website (at http://www.hometalent.org) and at the Home Talent Umpires Association website (at http://www.htua.org). If any teams are in need of Night League Umpires, we can facilitate putting those requests on the web, as well and umpires can directly contact the teams involved.

n Umpires are expected to arrive 30 minutes before game time and should notify the home team management that they have arrived. The umpires should be ready to be on the field to check player equipment (bats and helmets) 10 minutes before game time and then conduct a proper pre-game plate meeting, which includes exchanging of lineup cards and going over ground rules for the field. The home team manager should have 3 new baseballs ready and available for the plate umpire prior to the start of the plate meeting. Infield practices should start on time so that the games start on time.

n It is expected that the field be properly marked according to the Official Rules of Baseball, including proper batter’s boxes, foul lines, and running lane.

n Lineup cards should include all players and substitutes, including the players’ names and jersey numbers. Please give substitutes to the umpire by number (e.g. 25 for 4). Please list the DH (if used) in the lineup and understand the designated hitter rule.

n HTL Umpires will not tolerate profanity and otherwise unsportsmanlike behavior. Team representatives (players/coaches/anyone in a dugout) risk ejection for such behavior. Umpires are expected to file an incident report with the umpire coordinator(s) after an ejection happens and teams are encouraged to file their own report, as well. All incident reports filed by umpires will be forwarded by the coordinator(s) to the HTL League President. All communication by teams regarding umpiring or umpires will be handled in confidence.

n Home team management is responsible (within reason) for the behavior of their fans. Umpires should not tolerate excessive profanity and/or abuse from fans and home team management should cooperate with umpires to correct any situations so that the game is enjoyable for all involved.

n Players are required to wear helmets – at bat and while running the bases. While at bat, players must wear a helmet with an ear-flap facing the pitcher.

n Umpires are expected to keep games moving and the teams are encouraged to do so, as well. Pitchers are to complete their (up to 8) warm-up pitches within one minute of the completion of the third out of the previous inning. Relief pitchers will always receive 8 warm-up pitches on the mound before starting play (unless there is an excessive delay or the pitcher is entitled to more pitches, by rule).

n Players and managers should be aware that leaving their position to argue ball and strike calls could lead to ejection. Umpires are expected to listen to reasonable questions (not related to ball and strike calls) and concerns during a game, but persistent arguing, especially with respect to judgment calls, will lead to ejection.

o Managers should notify either coordinator three hours in advance (if possible) if a game is going to be cancelled due to weather conditions so that the umpires can be properly notified.

o Rescheduled games should be communicated to the coordinator(s) as soon as scheduled, but always at least 72 hours in advance of the rescheduled game. The originally scheduled umpires will be given the right of first refusal on all rescheduled games. All communication to umpires this season on rescheduled games will be via email, website, or telephone.

o Please review the umpire assignments for your games and please contact the coordinator(s) if there are any concerns, or if the time or date reflected is incorrect.

o Have the umpires sign the home team book – please contact the coordinator if an umpire does not show for a game, arrives late, or is not the umpire scheduled for the game.

n Great care will be taken to make sure umpires do not work the same teams or at the same fields too many times in a season. Please contact the coordinator(s) if you have any questions or concerns in this area.

n Finally, this list is not designed to be all-inclusive. We would like to stress that the lines of communication will be open all season. Please feel free to call or email us this season if you want to discuss any issue regarding the umpiring or the scheduling of the umpires. Feel free to evaluate and recommend umpires for playoff consideration, as even experienced umpires (and many teams) don’t get to see everyone on the staff in a given season. And certainly feel free to let us know how we can do our jobs better as much of this will be on-the-job training for us. We hope everyone has an outstanding 2005 season of Home Talent League Baseball.