UPMIRE INTERACTION
Beating The Odds
An Umpire’s Near Impossible Road To The Majors
moving too quickly, because I want to help you out.'" It's important for catchers to feel as if every pitch is on display, even in the bullpen or during practice. "They should get the feeling all the time that they're trying to sell that pitch," [Ed] Cheff says. "I want my catchers to have the mentality that, 'There's always an umpire behind me and this guy is going to make a call on this pitch and I'm trying to make it easy for him.' A lot of catchers are sloppy with this in drills and in the bullpen. Then they try to clean it up when they get in the game, and they can't."
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The players take the field, the stadium sound system declares “Play Ball!” or better still, “It’s time for Dodger baseball.” The fans settle down into their chosen seats in anticipation of the game that is to unfurl. The pitcher takes his warm up pitches while they are being counted as only eight are allowed. That count is taken by one of the four “men in blue”- the umpires – who will regulate and officiate the game.
During the game they will keep things moving and including balls and strikes they will make 300 to 400 decisions, perhaps more. While they are making those decisions to the best of their ability there are other umpiring crews at work including thousands of home town fans, fifty players plus their coaches and managers and a home audience of unknown count. There is little wonder that we hear fans shouting, “You’re missing a good game!” or “Want to borrow my glasses!” and sometimes epithets that cannot make it to the print media but are picked up through televised games.
It causes one to wonder how these men become umpires. Perhaps the better question would be why they become umpires. They follow a grueling schedule with perhaps no series in their home towns, living away from home all during the season with constant travel and quite often a daily barrage from players and fans alike.
The life of a MLB umpire is certainly
no picnic nor is the path to their
location behind the plate or on the
bases at Dodger Stadium or some
other MLB venue. They are paid well
for their services and their union –
the World Umpires Association –
tends to their labor negotiations
and deals with any labor disputes.
The starting pay for a rookie umpire
is $120,000 with senior umpires
earning upwards of $350,000 while
the most senior MLB umpires can
earn about $400,000. They receive a $340 per diem to cover hotels and food. MLB umpires receive four weeks of paid vacation and both the National League and the American League fly them first class to their next game sites.