Mace ?

[Tom In VA]

http://www.comcast.net/articles/sports- ... cts.Crowd/

WEST BURLINGTON, Iowa — An umpire has emptied the stands at a high school baseball game, ejecting the entire crowd of more than 100 fans for being unruly.

Umpire Don Briggs said he had no problem with any of the student athletes during Thursday's game between Winfield-Mount Union and West Burlington.

He said he had to take action because fans were being unruly, yelling and arguing.

However, West Burlington Superintendent James Sleister said he didn't see any unusual behavior and said he thought the umpire overreacted.

The game resumed after a 40-minute delay. West Burlington won 12-11.

The umpire called police as a precaution. West Burlington police officer Al Waterman says there were no arrests. He says he saw no unruliness himself.

I bet this was a sight to behold.


Hope your health is doing okay.

[Screw_Michigan]

No surprise to see some faggot AD take an anti-blue stance. Sure, I'm sure he just felt like tossing the whole crowd for the fuck of it today.

Fucking Iowa. Home of Noj. Full of mensa's.

[Wolfman]

As a certified FHSAA (Florida High School Athletic Association) and National Federation umpire, I'm still looking in my rule book where an umpire has this authority. Proper procedure would be to ask home team administration to take care of any unruly fans. That might even necessitate the use of local law enforcement. At "big" games they are typically there anyway and usually have a calming effect by their presence. If none of those options were available, I would suspend play and get to my car very fast. In all cases I would report this to the state association.

Then again--it was Iowa !

[War Wagon]

How is it that High School ball is still being played in Iowa in mid-June? Most college ball is done by now.

[War Wagon]

Wow, so no summer vacation for the kids or coaches, eh? That could be an issue. I'm thinking a lot of those kids would be playing on tournament teams, but I guess that's out. As well, aren't most if not all of the coaches full time school district employees?

I understand about the weather issues in the spring, though. This year was especially brutal with all the rain-outs and/or perfectly miserable weather to play ball in. I reckon it would be even worse a coupla' hundred miles north.

One of the issues around KC is that girls softball in Missouri plays a fall season while the Kansas High Schools play a spring season. Not sure why it's that way, but it sucks that the top schools from both sides of the State line never get to face each other for bragging rights.

[War Wagon]

Don't get me wrong, Mace. I totally understand the rationale for playing summer ball and I'm surprised more states don't do it. What about girls softball? Are they playing a summer schedule as well?

As for tournament teams, let them play in the spring and/or fall if they want.

[indyfrisco]

My ex-neighbor is the AD at the junior high here. He asked if I would help him out and referee their soccer games so I obliged. Had a situation where home team scores a goal to start the second half. I hear someone on the sideline screaming how they had too many girls on the field. I count. Sure enough, 1 too many kids. I know the rule. No goal. Ball at center field. Direct free kick for the other team.

This wasn't good enough for their fans. They felt they deserved a penalty kick. WRONG! I was cussed at and yelled at for the rest of the game. Every time I blew a whistle on their team, I heard it from them. I didn't think there was anything I could do about it so I ignored it. Then their coach starts chiming in. Finally, someone I can go take care of. I stop the game. I run to the sideline and ask the coach to repeat what he said. He said "We're losing 4-0. How can we be competitive when you're making bad calls right and left?" I simply tell him that if his team sucked less, they would be closer and if I hear him again, he's gone. I told him I would show him the rule in the book at the end of the game, but the clock is running and the other team wants to score more goals on his team before the game ends.

He never said another fucking word to me. After the game, I take the book out of my bag, circle the rule, hand it to him and said "I won't wait up for you or your fans' apologies. You folks are what is killing youth sports. I'm volunteering my time to do this. I'd rather be home watching a game with a beer in hand. I will never referee a game for you ungrateful people again." Dude just dropped his jaw. No apology. I called their AD the next day and told him the situation. He apologized, but it was too late. Never again. Not worth it. You have to have ZERO self respect to do a thankless job like that without eventually running into the stands with a fucking machete and start lopping off heads of fuckhead parents.

[Wolfman]

Funny story "IF"--but sadly all too common in youth sports. I officiate high school level football and softball down here. Under the auspices of the FHSAA coaches are not allowed to argue an official's judgment and are fined if they get run from a game. That pretty much insulates officials from a lot of hassles.
Years ago I volunteered to call a Little League baseball game for a friend. The parents were such assholes, I called him after and asked him not to ask me again. I won't even get into "softball guy" when I worked a lot of ASA softball back when I was chasing a $$ feeding a family of six.

[Screw]

I simply tell him that if his team sucked less, they would be closer and if I hear him again, he's gone. I told him I would show him the rule in the book at the end of the game, but the clock is running and the other team wants to score more goals on his team before the game ends.

RACK IF. Although I'd have to say you were a little excessive (he was probably a UAW chief), I'd have just left it at "Open your gaping maw again, you're watching the game from the parking lot." Opposite of you, that usually sets them off and then I get the direct pleasure of tossing them.

Umps and officials are expected to take WAY too much shit then they are entitled to because of the pussy administrators and coaches don't like being told to get fucked. "But you're not being professional." What about the fucking coaches and administrators?

That's why I have little to no respect for administrators. The good ones you meet are rare exceptions. The majority of them are big pussies who only care about reducing the heat under their own asses.

[War Wagon]

Screwed lost his password.

[Tom In VA]

Glad to hear about the health being okay Mace and that you're able to still enjoy your service in the community.

[Wolfman]

Mace has to be one of those rare cases of a coach who knows rules. I don't think most coaches in high school even crack open a rule book or pay attention if they have to attend a rules clinic.
In my long career in both softball,baseball, and football I have met very few rules knowledge able coaches. When you do and one of them comes out to talk to you about a call you made--you are thinking--"uh oh---did I blow one ?"
I recall once when that happened, the guy came up to me and in a voice that only the two of us heard, "Jim, you made the right call-- I'm just coming out here to keep my players happy, you can understand that right ?" I said sure --we chatted briefly and that was that.
I see that happening sometimes in games on TV and wonder if that is all there is to the conversation.

[smackaholic]

Did he kick any dirt on you?

Damn, I miss billy martin. Him and Earl Weaver are my two favorite redass managers. Sweet Lou is probably next.

[indyfrisco]

Although I'd have to say you were a little excessive (he was probably a UAW chief), I'd have just left it at "Open your gaping maw again, you're watching the game from the parking lot."

Keep in mind, as I said earlier, the fans of the opposing team were cussing me. This was middle school. My side judges were kids on the high school team. I rely on them for offsides calls on a counter attack. A side judge waves that flag and is in position, I have to trust him/her. I make the call. Fucking fans yell that I am taking the word of a kid as opposed to evaluating the play on my own. And sometimes I do evaluate on my own, but sometimes I trust the side judge. Anytime thier team lost a challenge for a ball, I heard it. Every time their kid was 10 yards offsides and I called it, I heard it. My fucking blood was BOILING. When the coach started popping off to me, and I did let a couple things go, I had had enough at that point.

In any case, when I umpired baseball in Dallas, it was for Little League. I never had any problems. I enjoyed it. This middle school soccer experience taught me three things. 1) I will never umpire/referee again. 2) As I want to coach my kids in all their sports, I will treat whoever is umpiring/refereeing with the utmost respect even when I have to let them know I disagree with them. 3) Since I plan on coaching my kids, I will tell all parents in the first meeting that I will not stand for their misbehavior to me, my assistants or the umpires/referees. I plan on telling them the same story I posted here, and how I was verbally abused for 40 minutes when I was right. I plan on saying that "sometimes, someone else knows more than you. and if they make a mistake, that means they are human."

Fuck the parents that are ruining kids' sports. I wish they all live in Donte Stallworth's neighborhood and get what's coming to them.

[smackaholic]

Mace, you still out there?

Hope it wasn't you that got whacked.

Did you know the guy?

[Derron]

Did he kick any dirt on you?

Damn, I miss billy martin. Him and Earl Weaver are my two favorite redass managers. Sweet Lou is probably next.

The little manager versus the normal sized umpire

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[socal]

Earl Weaver was a beaut. I bet he had no idea the umpire was wired. Or if he did it was something that MLB probably kept under wraps for a while.

[smackaholic]

Did he kick any dirt on you?

Damn, I miss billy martin. Him and Earl Weaver are my two favorite redass managers. Sweet Lou is probably next.

The little manager versus the normal sized umpire

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redass earl: in 10 years we'll see who's in the hall of fame

ump: you? for what? fukkin' up world series?

game, set and match and 'bode too, ump.

how tall is earl, btw? about 5 foot nuthin'?

[Terry in Crapchester]

Speaking of Mace, I sure hope this isn't him. http://sports.yahoo.com/top/news?slug=a ... &type=lgns

[TheJON]

Wow, so no summer vacation for the kids or coaches, eh? That could be an issue. I'm thinking a lot of those kids would be playing on tournament teams, but I guess that's out. As well, aren't most if not all of the coaches full time school district employees?

We had a summer vacation, it was just different than your normal summer vacation was like. I would have rather had it that way than play baseball in March in Iowa. I may have felt differently if I wasn't a pitcher, but basically in March the only time I could even throw was on the rare warm day or indoors. It snows a decent amount in March and rarely gets into the 50's. Even if they attempted to play, 75% of the games would be called off. Heck, April isn't even that nice. 70% of April seems to be in 40-50 for the high and there's a ton of rain and even a little snow. At least in April I could start throwing outdoors. I loved playing baseball and so I was perfectly fine with playing throughout the majority of the summer. One thing I really liked was that we didn't have to go to school then go to practice or play in a game. I'd get to sleep in, go to practice at around 11:00 if we didn't have a game that day and then I was free to do whatever I wanted the rest of the day. It was a lot easier. And on gamedays, we'd have to be at the park by 4:00 or so, but the rest of the day was free. Not much changed if we had a road game because most of our conference games were within a short bus ride across town. Only a couple of the schools in our conference were very far away. So I actually didn't mind it. Besides, you play baseball because it's fun, right? So I don't think many people complained. If we didn't enjoy it, we wouldn't have played.

and baseball is at Principal Park (home of the Cubs AAA team).

This makes me so jealous. It wasn't there when I was in high school. We had to play in a dump stadium. I would have loved to have played at Principal Park. That's one of the nicest minor league stadiums in the country.

[TheJON]

Noj, tell us you story again about how Tim McClellan is a piece of shit. I know you've told us before.

Details, please.

Aww.......good 'ol Timmy Mac! Dude never could just fucking admit that umps make mistakes from time to time......

[TheJON]

By the way, I'm not really sure what story you're talking about.

I worked at the same radio station as the guy for a while. Met him a few times, mostly just in passing or short conversations. I don't really have any story on him other than he's a sackless piece of crap that just won't fucking admit when an ump fucks up and that pissed me off and I let him know it. Was really no big deal. I'm sure he wouldn't even remember me if I saw him again.

So what story are you talking about?